November Rain
by scarlett2112
Summary: The emotion that can break your heart is sometimes the very one that heals it.
1. Chapter 1

Welcome to November Rain... Let's get started...

Damon is happy. He brushes a kiss to her hair then raises his eyes to the ceiling again. Here he is lying in bed with a beautiful woman having had _the_ conversation. It feels like a dream, a wonderful dream. He's not sure if he proposed by himself or if Vanessa brought up the topic. It doesn't matter. He's so lucky, right? An eccentric, overzealous historian such as himself needs a caring, understanding and supportive woman. The fact that she's highly presentable and that she's well acquainted with his profession, having worked with him for years is a welcome bonus in and of itself. It is also a boon to him that she's fully aware of his tics, mannerisms and other indiosyncracies.

However, there is one little tiny snag.

Snuggling in closer, Vanessa searches his suddenly clouded face, "Aren't you happy?"

Dropping his eyes, he forces a smile for her sake. "I am," he assures her. "Of course I am. But… you know, first I have to…"

"Get a divorce," Vanessa finishes for him and they both submerge themselves in thoughts. His stomach churns so hard that he can feel bile bite at the back of his throat.

"You know, I should have done it a long time ago, I'll have the papers mailed to her as soon as Alaric can get them drawn up, alright?" he turns to her, trying to cheer her up.

"Right," she gives him a knowing smirk. "Like that's gonna work."

* * *

Standing in front of the room, his back to the class, Damon starts scrawling today's lesson on his white board. When he finishes he turns around. Internally rolling his eyes when he sees a ginger flirting with him, he sighs and begins his presentation.

Alaric Saltzman approaches Damon's classroom. He peers though the door's window just in time to see Damon completing his lecture. He enters and stands at the rear of the room. Damon pauses for a second when he sees his best friend. He's grateful when the clock finally signals the end of class.

Just before the students begin to filter out, Damon adds, "Read 'Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling" by Ross King. If anybody's got questions, I'll be in my office for the next hour and a half." He's grateful when the bell finally rings. With an almost imperceptible nod to Ric, he moves over to his desk to start gathering up his notes, raising an eyebrow when the same girl drops a piece of paper on the desktop.

When the classroom clears, Ric approaches as the last of his students leave the lecture hall.

"Hey Ric, everything alright?" Damon steps closer. After dropping his ass to sit on the desktop, he adds, "It's been three weeks, what is taking so long?"

"I'm good. That's why I'm here, Damon. The papers I sent you.. I also sent _her_. It seems we might have a bit of a problem."

"I don't understand? Did she call?" Damon asks carefully. He can't imagine why would they have a problem with _her_. It's been years since the last time they saw each other. On top of that, she's the one who asked him for a divorce first. At the time, he didn't want to rush anything but now, it's just a formality.

"Well, not exactly. She mailed them back."

"I don't think I understand. What's the problem then?" Damon is beginning to lose patience with this conversation. The subject of his marriage has been safely locked away from his conscious mind for a very long stretch. He hates having to dredge it all up again.

"The problem, Damon, is that she didn't sign them."

Confusion clouds his face. Thinking that he misheard him, Damon looks him squarely in the eyes. "What? Did you just say…?"

"She. Didn't. Sign. The. Papers." Ric explains, annunciating every word for effect. She mailed them back unsigned."

Damon tries to make sense out of it but his mind comes out blank. After a few seconds of silence, he clears his throat. "Did she write a note or anything to explain?"

"Nope."

"Well? What will we do now?" Frustrated, Damon takes off his glasses and pinches the bridge of his nose. He shakes his head back and forth as anger begins to burn deep inside. After blowing out a breath of air, he faces Ric. "You either call her or that manager of hers?"

"I can try, but if _you_ tried…"

"Oh hell no, I'm not calling her. And I'm certainly not going to talk to _him_. Do what you have to do, try to reason with her but know this... I want it done and over with. I don't ever want to have to think about it again. It's ridiculous that I'm married to…"

"You've made yourself perfectly clear so yes, Damon, I get it. But I would suggest that you prepare yourself. I really rather doubt that she'll want to chit-chat when she hears that I'm on the phone."

"You're not afraid of her, are you?" Damon chuckles, remembering that one occasion when she almost slapped Ric out of their house when he tried to take Damon's side in another one of their stupid arguments.

"No of course not but I have a feeling that you're not exactly eager to confront her personally either."

"You're right about that." Raking his hand through his hair, he sighs, frustration building. "She's being difficult because she can. But I am done playing this game with her. I suspect that she's trying to get back at me for refusing to sign the papers all those years ago. At that time, I just thought that we shouldn't rush into anything, you know?"

Standing up, Ric moves closer to Damon. Squeezing his shoulder, he tightens his lips. "Alright man, let me see what I can do. I'll be in touch. You and I both know her so if I were you, I wouldn't hold my breath. I'll let you know what happens." With that, he slaps his friend's arm and then walks out of the lecture hall.

Getting up himself, Damon picks up his coffee mug. Although he wants to throw it, he grips it for a few seconds before finally setting it back down. He heads towards his office and when he sees a group of students clamoring to see him, he locks himself inside, wondering how on earth he's going to explain this mess to Vanessa. _She_ didn't sign the damn papers.

* * *

A little less than a week later, Ric texts Damon to meet him for drinks at their favorite bar. Staring at his phone, an uneasy feeling begins to gnaw at his gut. He suspects there's more to it than just having a few drinks together.

"Spill," he utters once he sits down armed with a glass of his favorite bourbon.

Ric waits till he takes a sip then meets his friend's stare. "I didn't talk to her."

Damon is about to protest but his friend stops him with a lifted hand. "I didn't talk to her because every time I tried to call she was 'unavailable', I did however talk to Enzo," he weighs Damon's reaction, when he says nothing, Ric continues. "He said he would give her the message."

"And?"

"He did call back... She says that she has nothing to talk about with me and as for the papers, she needs to focus on finishing her latest movie. According to Enzo, she said and I'm quoting now, "She won't let herself get dragged into your drama."

Damon almost drops the glass. "What the… Who in the hell does she think she is? _My_ drama? Who's the drama queen here?"

Ric raises his hands. "Don't kill the messenger. I wasn't thrilled with the call either. That guy is as agreeable as a snake and just as slippery," Ric grimaces in disgust.

Damon knows all too well how slimy he is. Enzo is probably a good manager and he's always been incredibly loyal to his wife but what a pain in the ass! Damon is still perplexed about what she ever saw in him.… _No, he won't go there._

"What do you propose I do? How is it even possible that she is refusing to even talk about it?"

Ric, hesitates. He takes a long pull from his glass, savoring the taste as it goes down. "We could do some things but all of them would lead to a lot of publicity. You can't exactly sue a popular someone with a star as big as hers. Most people have no idea that your marriage even exists. It will attract the media, you do know that, right?"

Damon raises his hand, "Yeah, I got it. No publicity. I don't want my name in the newspapers and especially not in connection to her, no way. So, are you suggesting that I have to stay married to her?"

Rick sighs, "I know you don't like it but in my opinion the best chance you have is to talk to her yourself. Try to call her, or Enzo, if that doesn't work, you know where to find her."

"You are kidding, right? There is no way on God's green earth that I'm going to fly to LA. I have no intention to talk to her either. Two can play that game," he mumbles.  
Ric shrugs, nodding when the waitress asks if they want a refill. As soon as she steps away, he adds, "Well, either you talk to her or you'll have to stay married."

"Fuck! Damn it."

The left corner of Ric's lip lifts. "You know _Professor_ , you look like an old fart most of the time but when it comes to _her_ …"

"Don't remind me. I refuse to let her ruin my life anymore than she already did. I was a fool for thinking that she would grow up and start taking life seriously. I was naïve to think she might actually put her family, me first. I was willing to forgive and for…," he closes his eyes for a second, "No, instead she runs away to LA to build her precious career. She never bothered to look back.. for _years_."

"Did you want her to?" Rick asks quietly.

"Wanted what?"

"Did you want her to come back?"

"Of course, I mean… I don't know. Probably. In the beginning. Maybe it was for the best," Damon closes this _nonsensical_ conversation. "I'll think about it. I'll let you know what I decide." He finishes his bourbon, no longer in the mood to stay, he stands up, waves at Ric and walks away .

Rick watches him go. Despite Damon's protestations, he knows those old wounds are still raw and simmering just below the surface. Worse, there's probably a lot more than Damon's willing to admit even to himself.

* * *

It takes Damon exactly three days of seeing Vanessa's unhappy looks and despondent demeanor for him to make up his mind. The need to end it once and for all gnaws at his insides. He somehow manages to swallow his pride. He's not sure when the most appropriate time to call a Hollywood star would be but he does know that he has to wait till Vanessa leaves for the evening.

Their living situation is another thing he should probably address soon. If they're going to marry, they might as well live together right? The thought awakens a strange feeling. If he didn't know better, he'd say he's nervous, but Damon doesn't do nervous. He's rational and collected. It's normal right? he tells himself. This is a life changing event after all.

He picks up his phone and… _Does she even have the same phone number?_ He didn't ask Ric but he rations that he would have told him if she had a different number. He stares at the phone for a few moments, weighing the pros and cons. He knows he has to do it but he doesn't want to. He finally pushes the button to dial her number. It's labeled by a single syllable, it always has been. All he can do is listen and wait. After a minute with no answer he loses his patience and ends the call, throwing to phone on the couch. _No voicemail._ He's not even sure that he called _her_.

Why would a Hollywood star of her caliber have the same number after _three years_? He pours himself a stiff drink and throws it back to bolster his nerves before he metaphorically steps into the lion's den. He plops down on the couch and picks up the phone. His gut is roiling. "C'mon Damon," he mutters and finally dials Enzo's number. Two rings later, he hears that voice.

"Damon, it's been a long time, he begins cheerfully. Damon fists his free hand in frustration, he would gladly strangle him if he was in reach.  
"Ehm, Enzo."

Damon can hear him chuckling in the background. "You called for a reason, what is it that you want?"

 _The bastard's enjoying it_. "I was wondering… if you could tell her to pick up the phone. Or just have tell her to sign the papers so we can be done with it."

"You know Damon, I'm not her dad. If she doesn't want to sign your divorce papers or even speak to you, that's her choice. Trust me, I would like nothing better than for her to be rid of the… inconvenience in the least painful way and as soon as possible myself. But you know her just as well as I do, she isn't going to sign anything till she's good and ready."

"Yes, Enzo, I can imagine you personally have only her best interests in mind," Damon can't help the biting tone he uses, but Enzo doesn't seem to lose his good humor.

"Okay pal, why don't you fly out here, bring the papers and try to convince her by yourself? She won't talk to you or your lawyer for that matter and I'm not putting _our_ relationship in jeopardy because of you. Or you can keep pretending you're a bachelor and continue to live your boring little life. Frankly, I don't care... well, actually I do care but I'm leaving this in her hands."

"Are you being serious right now? Do you really think that I have nothing better to do than run to Hollywood to chase after a prima donna? I have classes to teach, lectures to give, a symposium in Paris coming up, let alone my own research and a book to be published. But I don't think people like you understand the concept of hard work."

"Listen to yourself, Damon. How can I blame her for not wanting to talk to you? Your time, your choice. We have a movie to finish and unlike your books and lectures, half of America expects her movie to premiere by the end of the year. Have a good day." Enzo ends the call before Damon can even blink. _What is it about this guy and his ex, or wife whatever - that drives him crazy?_

As much as he dreads seeing her again, he knows that he has no other choice if he wants to make a life with Vanessa. Next month he'll be in Los Angeles for a lecture.. And to face his past.

* * *

 _I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter. There's much more to come._

 _Huge thanks to all of you for your friendships, support, follows, favorites, encouraging words and everything you do for Eva and me. We can't say it enough, YOU ARE ALL THE BEST!_

 _Synopsis quote courtesy of Nicholas Sparks._

 _Story title: Guns N Roses._

 _Huge thanks to Eva. You are brilliant and so insightful. There's an ocean separating us - so often she's up into the wee hours of her mornings, plotting, planning, writing in our effort to hopefully deliver entertaining stories for all of you._


	2. The Memory Remains

_"Mama? Can you teach me how to draw like you? Like the kids you teach?" Miranda kneels in front of her daughter. "Of course, sweetie, lets sit in the class, you can draw anything you like."_

 _Elena bites her lower lip, concentrating on the picture she's drawing. Looking over her work, she frowns. The head is too small, the hands too big, the arms too thin. She can see the imperfections but no matter how hard she tries, she can't make her hand capture what she can see in her mind. Her mom stops next to her a few times, pointing out the things to improve, guiding her hand when necessary. After several painful lessons Elena throws away the pencil and sweeps away the pictures. Without bothering to look back, she runs into the garden, climbs over the fence and follows the path to the edge of the forest, dropping cross legged onto the grass in her favorite hiding place. Miranda finds her there an hour later, when she thinks Elena's ready to talk about it._

 _"What's the matter, baby girl?"_

 _"I can't draw. The pictures are ugly, not like yours. Everyone can draw but I can't." Her eyes are swimming in tears and Miranda would cry herself at her daughter's heartbreak._

 _She takes her hand. "Do you trust me?" When Elena nods, she gives her hand a gentle squeeze. "Come with me then."_

 _Elena knows her mom can always see things differently, show her another angle and make her feel better. She likes that about her mom. She wants to be like her one day too. Holding hands, Miranda takes her to the studio, it's abandoned on Sunday afternoon, they have it for themselves. Miranda turns on the music, partially opens the curtains to let some sunlight filter in from the outside. With her mother's encouragement, they sit down on the carpet, facing each other._

 _"Drawing is like when you're dancing. You're very good at dancing, Elena. You express your feelings through an art. You share what you feel with others and give them pleasure. Everyone has their own way to do it. Drawing, dancing, acting, statues, music, there are all kinds of ways to express your unique personality. Some people are good at drawing, some, like you, are good at dancing, other's act or play an instrument. You see, they're all the same. Focus on what you feel and how you want to show it and you can become an artist too."_

 _She helps her daughter stand up, reaches out her hands, lightly supporting Elena's fingertips and guides her into the space. At some point Elena starts feeling the music and her heartache over her inability to draw the picture she imagined disappears. She lets go of her mother's hands and spins around following the rhythm of the song playing. It's sad but incredibly powerful and Elena's body tingles with need to release the restlessness and inner energy. And she does just that. By the end of the afternoon she's exhausted but there's also a strong feeling of satisfaction, one she's never known before._

 _That day was both sad and empowering for on that day, Elena became an artist. And although her mother's hands no longer guide her, she holds onto them in everything she does._

* * *

Tired after his long flight, Damon pays the cab driver and then steps inside the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood. Tucked away in a lush enclave that hovers above the Sunset Strip, Chateau Marmont is a Hollywood legend. Decidedly hip, famously decadent, the hotel has been a fixture of the Hollywood scene since the 1930's. "If you must get in trouble, do it at the Chateau Marmont," said original Columbia Pictures head Harry Cohn, Damon recalls, having stayed at the place one other time when he was on a book tour.

Despite the relatively early hour, he feels a little jet lagged going from the central time zone into the Pacific time zone. Because of his status as an art history expert as well as being a best selling author, the chancellor at Xavier University in New Orleans allows him time off to give an occasional lecture or series of them. Damon is head of the art history department, his work at the school has been fiscally beneficial to the school. Many of their benefactors often cite his work as reason to give endowments to both his department and the school in general.

After checking in, he stops in the hotel bar to get himself a bottle of Maker's Mark. If he's going to see _her_ again, he'll need all the fortification he can get. He took an earlier flight thinking he might be able to stop at the studio and be done with it in one fell swoop but like everything else with Elena, it was not to be. As soon as he got off of the plane, he called Enzo from the airport but the son of a bitch told him that she's unavailable. His first lecture is tomorrow morning so he doesn't honestly know when he'll be able to lay eyes on her again.

Screwing off the cap, Damon takes a long pull directly from the bottle, Enzo's words still burn hot in his belly. "Sorry, bro, you'll just have to stick to the plan."

Damon is sorely tempted to slam the bottle against the fireplace when his frustration level peaks to an almost lethal intensity. He takes one more deep swallow then sets the bottle aside, strips out of his clothes and heads for the bathroom to shower. Maybe once he cleans the sweat and grime off, he'll be able to think more clearly, well until he gets sloshed anyway? He has every intention of opening that bottle again after slipping into his pajama pants.

Frankly, he's quite glad Vanessa didn't come with him. She'll have her hands full covering his lectures while he's in LA. Not only that but she doesn't need to witness what he's certain will be a rather awkward meeting with Elena. They'll have to negotiate a divorce settlement, not that he wants anything from her and he knows without doubt that she won't want anything from him.

Still, it's been three long years since he watched her get on that airplane. At the time, he had no idea that so much time would pass with hardly any correspondence between them. Nostalgia is a bitch, he decides and in a feeble attempt to calm his still raging mind he steps to the window to absorb the atmosphere of the city. At the sight of the hustle and bustle deep below his hotel room he's suddenly overwhelmed by deja vu. It was here, in this very hotel when he first saw her at the reception.

 _The buzz and crowds are so not his thing but he could hardly avoid it. He promised his publisher as well as the Dean of Xavier University that he would be a good boy and do everything his agent arranged to satisfy the media and those promoting his first book. All of this high toned and fancy to do is happening at an annual writer's convention. Damon is bathing in the spotlight and despite his less than stellar attitude about all of the fanfare, it might just be the best night of his life._

 _Things, however, don't run as smoothly as he would have liked. Among the hotel guests are members of a film crew celebrating the premiere of a chick flick. At least that's what he supposes given the looks of the people he's run into at the hotel's restaurant and even at the reception. The scientific association booked the room for a private reception but the guests mingle with the film makers and no one seems to care about Damon's increasing consternation._

 _How can well respected scientists be okay with such an invasion? He decides not to let anyone spoil his evening and pushes his way into the room. The welcoming looks, occasional pats on his shoulder do him good. He's about to join a group of academics he met earlier when he sees her. The most beautiful woman he's ever laid eyes on. Her olive skin is literally glowing. Her waist length hair shimmers under the lights._

 _She's wearing a strapless form fitting black dress, matching stiletto heels and if that wasn't enough to attract a second look, the moment their eyes meet, it feels like he's being sucked into a vortex, volatile, gut churning but incredible nonetheless. He doesn't for a moment believe she's an academic but that all leaves his head the moment she smiles at him. Beaming. That's the first word that pops into his mind. Her whole face lights up like a 1000 watt lightbulb. Damon is mesmerized, blown away by sheer magnitude of her presence._

 _He watches her wave to an older woman and then turns as if looking around for other familiar faces. She looks a little lost and Damon finds himself drawn to her as if something magnetic is pulling him closer and closer._

 _"Can I be of any help?" he addresses her without actually thinking about it._

 _If it's at all possible, she turns to him and gives him an even sweeter smile. "I'm not sure, can you?"_

 _Damon can feel the floor slipping out from under his feet but he's powerless to stop it. "My apologies, I'm Damon Salvatore, Dr. Damon Salvatore... a guest at this party."_

 _"I'm Elena... Elena Gilbert," she adds when she sees no recognition. She offers him her hand and for some reason he doesn't just shake it, he touches his lips to the back of her fingers. She doesn't seem to be surprised, but her smile stretches wider. "I'm afraid I'm not a guest here. But some good professors invited us to join the party, they said the boring scientists need to mingle with 'normal' people."_

 _Damon's not sure how he feels about that but her beaming personality and yes, her gorgeous body command his attention. He's a man with eyes and her beauty simply overwhelms everything and everyone else. He suddenly feels a burning desire to impress her. But how does one do that without bragging?_

 _He offers to get her a drink and she follows him, miraculously avoiding other people trying to catch her attention, she listens to his random comments and babbling about the city, the weather, the symposium and soon he finds himself telling her about his studies, research, travels and eventually about the book he just released._

 _"So, I'm in company of the man of the year now?" he's not that far gone that he's not able to recognize she's genuine. She doesn't make fun of him._

 _"Bah," he waves it off, "I'm no celebrity, I'm just a fan, you know? There are still so many fascinating things and details in our history that we don't know, it's... exciting to explore them, passing on the knowledge to future generations."_

 _She isn't bored, he's pretty sure and the way she looks at him... she's genuinely interested. She spends most of the evening in his company, although multiple different people from his or her world tried to intrude and he, shockingly, stopped thinking about how this evening, on the most important day of his life, was supposed to be about him._

 _"Can I see you tomorrow?" The question is out before he realizes he's about to speak when she looks at her watch and says she needs to go._

 _She looks at him closely and then nods with a twinkle in her eyes. "Of course, Professor. Give me a call when you're free from your duties. I have to do a couple of interviews in the morning but after that, I'm free for the day."_

 _She pulls out a card from her purse and hands it to him. It simply spells Elena Gilbert in calligraphic print and a phone number. After sharing another smile with him, she disappears from his sight. He stares until he hears his name._

 _"Hello Professor Salvatore. My name is April Young, I'm representing Forbes Magazine. Can I ask you a couple of questions?"_

 _"I don't mean to be rude but I have plans so if you could make them quick."_

 _"What made you decide to write a book on Faberge?"_

 _"I think the man was a genius and extremely gifted. The Eggs he designed for the Russian Imperial Family is what drew me to him in the first place."_

 _"Very good. I read it, it's a fascinating book. And lastly, do you have plans for a follow up, a different subject perhaps?"_

 _"I have some ideas but nothing is concrete," he starts to say when he feels a hand fall on his shoulder. Startling slightly, he relaxes when he sees that it's his childhood friend and personal attorney Alaric Saltzman._

 _"Well I'll let you go, thank you for your time, Professor Salvatore," April adds, handing him her card before disappearing into the crowd._

 _"I can't believe you spent the evening with Elena Gilbert!"_

 _"Yes, the party wasn't exactly 'academic' I couldn't focus...Wait, what? You know her?"_

 _Ric laughs heartily. "The whole of America knows her. And a big part of the rest of the world too. She's an actress, one of the most popular in last few years. She looks even better in person, that lady sizzles. I didn't want to intrude but I have to ask, was she nice?"_

Damon takes another long pull from his bottle. He shouldn't have come back here, not to this hotel. His mind is already playing tricks, reminding him of that crazy period when he thought building a life with an actress was a good idea.

* * *

"I'm not listening!" Elena sing-songs, covering her ears with her palms. "I know he's coming tomorrow, you've mentioned it ad nauseam and yes, I will talk to him no matter how much I don't want to. But I am not discussing it with you now."

Enzo rolls his eyes. "That would be creepy, I'm not discussing it with you either. I just want you to be ready but you should have taken my advice and dealt with him years ago. Damon sounded quite determined, he won't leave without seeing you. Quite frankly, you should be just as determined as he is," he adds, looking at her closely.

"I know that, Enzo. I would just rather forget that whole unfortunate episode of my life. I don't like being reminded of it."

Enzo nods with an unreadable face. "I know. But think of it this way, after you do this, you'll never have to see him again. I don't know about you but that idea is rather appealing to me."

"Yeah, I suppose." Her tone tells him the conversation's over. He's been always perfectly in tune with her different moods and can tell she's done with the subject matter whether he wants to pursue it further or not. _If he didn't love her so much..._ Enzo sighs and gets up. It's been a long day. "Are you coming?"

"Not yet," she gives him a small smile, one he's sure she forced for his benefit.

"Alright then. Don't stay up too long," he kisses her forehead and heads upstairs.

Elena breathes a sigh of relief. She both loves and hates Enzo's perceptiveness. She knows all too well that it's pointless to pretend anything because he always knows and it frustrates her sometimes. There are some things that she'd rather keep to herself, namely her unresolved marriage.

* * *

 _The phone won't stop ringing._ Damon slowly comes to his senses and it takes him a few more moments to realize it's not an alarm but an actual phone call. He swallows the content of the glass on his bedside table which happens to be a bit of bourbon and grimaces. When he finally answers it, his voice's a bit raspy.

"Hello?"

 _"Damon? I didn't wake you did I?"_

"Well...," Damon looks at the time and is awake immediately, he's supposed to be at the university in two hours and still needs to shower, shave and have something to eat after tying one on last night. "You did," he tells her truthfully. "But it's a good thing because I overslept."

 _"I won't keep you then. I just wanted to wish you good luck and tell you the classes are going well... Did you...?"_

"Not yet," he pauses, dropping his throbbing forehead into his hand. "Sorry Ness, she wasn't available, I'm already getting used to that line."

 _"Oh, I'm sorry sweetie, I'm sure everything will work out."_

"Thanks, I'm sure it will. Gotta go, I'll call you this evening?"

" _Bye Damon."_

As soon as he hears the dial tone, he clicks off his phone. He's lucky to have such a sweet and caring girl. Although his head hurts, he hops out of bed and into the shower and quickly runs through his morning routine. After buttoning up his dress shirt, he looks at the ties that she packed for him. _Which one should he choose?_ The black one, wine red or the pastel one with stripes? It's not for the lecture which makes him ask himself why he bothered to bring this one along? He should have asked Vanessa but it's not her that pops into his mind. He knows which one Elena would choose...

 _It's been a week since they met and it's already their third date. Unfortunately time is not on their side, Damon needs to go back to his university and Elena? Who knows where her next motion picture shoot will take her? Yet despite the obstacles, he can't seem to get enough of her company. She's like a shooting star, bright and burning everything in her path, he can't sleep, he can't eat and worse, he can't focus on his work. He's never felt anything like this before._

 _"What's so funny?" Damon looks himself over and then steps in front of the full length mirror. Perhaps his collar is creased or something is sticking out of his pants?_

 _"Nothing."_

 _The mischievous glint in her eyes doesn't look like 'nothing'. Damon wishes she'd just say it but she's so adorable he can't be angry with her for being silly._

 _"Alright, I can see that you're getting a little anxious," Elena's face becomes serious but just a little. "I think it's funny that every time you change your suit, you also change your tie and you always choose black or dark grey. You're too young to dress so conservatively and much too serious."_

 _"Well, miss fashion maven, what color would you choose?"_

 _"The dark one suits you," she considers seriously, "but I'd add a colored tie. Or perhaps a bow tie. Maybe even stripes? Two or three colors, orange, black, white or purple, black, gray. Personally I love pastel pink with gray. You shouldn't dress to look like someone's father," she shrugs, already smiling again. She reaches her hand to adjust his tie, her focus on tying it in a Windsor knot._

 _Damon catches her hand and their eyes meet. Hers shine like stars and he's sure his are telling as well. He doesn't know which of them makes the first move, finally closing the distance but the kiss is just... mind blowing. It tastes like forbidden fruit and the promise of something more. When they part, her eyes are full of wonder and if he didn't know it before, he knows for sure now that he's a goner._

This must have been the point of no return. He sighs, stuffs his room key in his wallet and then walks out, pulling the door closed behind him.

* * *

 _I wanted to give you a little more of this story before we settle into the weekly update. Thank you so much for your responses to it. Eva and I are so grateful for your kind words, reviews, follows and favorites._

 _We really work hard day and night to try to bring you new and different stories. I heard a song on the radio going to work New Year's Day. As soon I got home the next morning, I immediately messaged Eva that we had to use it for a story title so now we have to come up with a plot for it. Thank you Eva, you're the best._

 _Chapter title: 'The Memory Remains' by Metallica._

 _'Eyes Without A Face' is in progress. It will be the next update._

 _Have a fantastic weekend and thank you all again._


	3. Angry Words

Despite waking up late and being bombarded with an inconvenient set of memories, Damon arrives just in time to give his lecture. Judging by the vigorous round of applause he receives at the end, his talk is a resounding success. He takes the time to answer several questions about his new book and guessing by the robust reception, he believes it'll be another best seller.

By the time he exits the auditorium, he feels ready for whatever comes his way which means he should be ready to face _her._ But the maelstrom that's brewing in both his stomach and his head is evidence enough to the contrary. He hops in a cab and after telling the driver his destination, he opens his briefcase and switches his red tie for a black one. He needs to put a wall between them and somehow he thinks the tie may be his only weapon.

Once he arrives, he pays the man and then steps out, finding himself unable to move for several moments. He moves forward till he's standing in the front of the building, debating with himself whether or not he should walk through the double doors. Pausing, he pulls his phone out of his suit pocket and calls Enzo. His frustration reaches an even more feverish pitch when the bastard doesn't answer his phone.

 _I'm one of the world's foremost experts in matters in history and art. I'll be dammed if I will turn tail and run away from... actors._

The word sticks in his throat, the thought of _them_ leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. On top of that, he's told to wait in the reception area until they find the elusive _Mr. St. John._ The very thought that he's wasting his precious time waiting on Enzo is maddening to say the very least. Still, he's a man on a mission and no matter what inconveniences he has to tolerate, he's going to get this taken care of once and for all.

Damon is nearly climbing the walls by the time Enzo finally breezes into the waiting area as if he didn't have a care in the world. His nonchalance is enviable if Damon didn't know that he did it on purpose. Offering his hand, he gives Damon a shiny smile.

"Damon, glad you could make it."

 _Glad you could make it?_ This guy is really asking for trouble. Damon is fuming inside but he needs to maintain his composure. "Enzo," Damon adds shortly.

Enzo exchanges a few words with the receptionist. Damon wonders for a thousandth time _what the hell Elena sees in him._ The bane of his existence leads him to the elevator, pushes the button and focuses his attention on him.

"How was you flight? And, of course, today's oration? I hope you didn't have too much trouble with the traffic."

"Cut the crap, Enzo, we're not doing the small talk thing."

"As you wish, mate," Enzo shrugs. "Thought we could kill some time while we're waiting."

"Waiting for what?" Damon groans. _"She's_ not available again!?"

" _She_ is... but she's been delayed. She's had to do interviews all day long. It really shouldn't be too much longer."

"Wonderful," Damon fights the urge to gnash his teeth.

The elevator stops and he follows Enzo down the hall and into an office. It looks more like an apartment, there's a coffee table, leather lounge suite and a few armchairs, heavy carpet, a large monitor TV on the wall and he can also see another room through the open door, probably a dressing room with a sofa and a large mirror.

"Coffee? Something stronger?" Enzo asks and gestures for him to sit.

"No, thank you. I don't want either, I just want this overwith."

"Okay then. If you don't want to talk or have anything to drink, I'm going to take my leave. She should be here soon."

Before Damon manages to form a biting response, Enzo is nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Elena twists the lid off of her water bottle and takes a deep pull. It's been a long day and in addition to that she still has Damon to deal with. She's anxious but ever the professional, she's able to hide it from inquiring minds. Between speaking with various members of the press in person, she also has been receiving phone message after message, trying to coax something juicy about her private life. By now she knows all of their tricks and is easily able to get through it without a slip up.

It's rather miraculous that they've never found out the gritty details of her marriage, hell they've never even reported that she was ever married in the first place. The way they dig like rabid dogs, it really is quite remarkable that not one of them has ever gone on the air with breaking news that she's married and to a scholar no less.

Now she finds herself face to face with this creepy guy, _Atticus_ something. He's prying, digging for something and she wonders what he would do if she told him - "How would you like to get the scoop about my marriage to Professor Damon Salvatore, the famous art history expert?" She almost chuckles. _Almost_.

When she sees the funny look on the guy's face, she knows that she probably didn't cover herself as good as she normally does. _She just needs this stupid interview to be over so she can go to see Damon._ She mentally snorts, like that's going to be so easy.

"Do you have any more questions?" Elena meaningfully looks at her watch, but the journalist is nothing if not persistent.

"What is the status of your relationship with Mr. St. John?"

Elena mentally rolls her eyes in annoyance. "My private life is my business, you know that, Atticus."

"Well," he doesn't give up, "you live together, you're always arm in arm with him at every event both formal and informal, you're practically inseparable. That implies..?"

"What's your question, then?"

"I mean, have you considered making it official...?"

"You'll be the first one to know," Elena says sweetly and stands up to indicate that the interview's over.

"Thank you for your time, Elena." After staring at her for several moments, Atticus Shane, representative of 'Celebrity Magazine' has no other option than to be on his way.

Elena still manages to leave the room before him. _Where the hell is Enzo?_ She knows he's not that cool with Damon being here and that he's worried about her. But now when she could really use his support, he just disappears? Feeling more than a little disgruntled, she huffs dramatically.

The thought that he'd keep Damon company is ridiculous. She turns the corner and slips into the dressing room she has at her disposal. She needs to get out of this uncomfortable dress. She's not going to talk to Damon feeling like a sardine, the damn thing is so tight that she can barely take a breath. The door's ajar but she manages to change into a pair of Levi's and a white tee shirt without catching his attention.

 _Here we go._ She takes a deep breath and enters the room to face her past.

* * *

Damon gets up for the umpteenth time to look out of the window. He peers down the sidewalk hoping to find her among the throngs of people walking past but no such luck. He steps into the bathroom and when he's done, he starts to pace the room, stopping suddenly when he hears the tale tell sign of a door creaking. Swallowing thickly, he slowly turns around and there she is...

"Damon...," she just breathes his name out, no smile or any emotion on her face. She's even more stunning than he remembers, _maybe it's Enzo who's making her happy?_ Or perhaps he'd forgotten the sheer magnitude of her presence...

"Elena."

His greeting could not have been more chilly, but it's hardly a surprise. She's wearing jeans and a simple tee shirt, she looks down to earth and yet somehow it reflects her natural beauty even more. Whether she's wearing the most expensive designer gown or a simple pair of Levis, she's stunning, _breathtaking really._

Enzo told him that she's been doing interviews so he surmises that she must have changed her attire before she joined him. She looks older, wiser, Damon decides and tired too, probably from hours of speaking to the press.

 _What the hell is he doing? She's not his to worry about, not anymore._ He clears his throat and wants to say something but suddenly he doesn't know where to start.

Elena pours herself a drink and takes a look at the empty table. "You haven't gotten yourself one?" Without waiting for his reply, she adds, "I'll have one if you don't mind."

Damon fights the urge to snort. As if she cares, she'd have it no matter what.

She disappears for a moment, returning with a bottle and an extra glass. Eyeing him, she sets them down on the end table, gesturing for him to help himself before plopping down on the opposite end of the couch. Any other time he'd wave it off but he's pretty sure he'll need one for this conversation. He picks up the bottle of bourbon and fills a glass. He settles back against the couch and takes a long draw from it. Several tense minutes pass and when they're both comfortable on the couch, Elena shifts and focuses her attention on him.

"Well, Damon?"

"Damon what?" he snaps. "Why didn't you just sign the damn papers? Christ, Elena, you could have saved us both from having to suffer through this incredibly awkward conversation? Is there a reason for it or are you just doing it to be difficult?"

"I resent that, Damon, and no I'm not being difficult. But I might remind you that you weren't exactly breaking any land-speed records when I wanted to solve this dilemma years ago myself."

"It's so typical of you. I was right wasn't I? This is about revenge. I didn't sign yours so you won't sign mine. Very mature, Elena..."

"Don't be ridiculous, if I really wanted revenge, there would be so many easier ways to exact it. There's so much unsettled, I just thought we should... you know, talk? That way there will be no illusions or misunderstandings left between us and since I'm finishing an important movie..."

"You're always finishing an important movie," Damon blurts out and Elena is momentarily taken aback, this particular comment hurts.

"And what should we talk about? _That_ conversation has been postponed for three years now, Elena. I just want to get the papers signed and then we can go back to ignoring each other now and for the rest of our lives."

Elena's tone gets noticeably colder. "Oh you'd like that wouldn't you? But if you want me to sign those papers, this is my price, one you're going to have to pay. It's for your own good as well as mine. Maybe next time... with her.. you can avoid the mistakes of the past..."

"Mistakes? Really Elena? You. Left. Me. You ran off to LA with Enzo without so much as a backwards glance. Then you sent me the divorce papers which I didn't sign, partly because I thought we should talk about it. But you couldn't be bothered," he adds bitterly.

Elena nods, "Of course, you'd see it that way... And that's precisely why you and I need to talk."

"I don't want to talk," he barks stubbornly. "Can you just... Please.. for once in your life do the right thing? You made the choice to end our marriage three years ago, can't we just stick with that decision?"

Elena gives him a long hard look. "I can't and I won't do that, Damon. Call me tomorrow?" She throws back what's left in her tumbler then walks out of the room without looking back.

* * *

After paying the taxi driver, Damon stalks to his room, slams the door shut and goes straight for the bottle of bourbon. He's not sure if the past two hours were real or not. As usual whenever she comes into his life, he's turned inside out, upside down and round and round. She shouldn't still be able to have such a profound effect on him, not anymore _and yet_... He's over her and fully committed to another relationship, one he always imagined for himself and his academic work.

Does he even listen to himself? He's building life around his academic career. Elena would snort at the thought of it. She'd blithely tell him that he's turned into an old and stodgy curmudgeon... What the fuck does she know about life, family or responsibilities anyway? Why is he even giving two cents about what she would say? Clearly she has lost it, that much was obvious from their attempt at conversation, he fumes and takes a long pull from the bottle.

He has no idea what they have left to talk about. Whatever conversation she's demanding, one that probably should've been done three years ago, not now, is weighing heavily on his mind.

He takes another swallow and then grabs a glass, quickly pouring another. Clutching the glass between his palms in frustration, he chastises himself. Instead of letting her get to him, he should be focusing his time and energy on how to get the papers signed. After all, he's doing this for Vanessa. And for himself. He'll be damned if he's going to give her the satisfaction of seeing him give up. Perhaps that's what she's waiting for, maybe even counting on?

He throws himself on the bed without bothering to change or even shower and after a few more drinks he falls asleep, completely forgetting to call Vanessa as he promised.

* * *

"What are you doing, Elena? Do you even know?"

Elena doesn't like the way Enzo's looking at her. Also his tone indicates she's not going to get a pass, not this time. She turns to him, her eyes pleading. "Can you just... let me do this? I know how it must look to you..."

"No. You. Don't. Do you have even the faintest idea? And Christ, Elena, is it really worth it after all this time has passed?" he watches her with desperation, not knowing how to change her mind.

"Something I should have done years ago. It needs to end the right way, the proper way. It's what I need, you know that. I'm under no illusions, not anymore and yes, I really do know what I'm doing so please, Enzo, just trust me with this?"

He's looking into her eyes and finally nods. "Do what you need to do." _And he will be there to pick up the pieces, as he's always been._

* * *

 _Eva and I want to thank you all so very much. You're an amazing group of people, we're in awe every day the support you give us. We don't even begin to know how to thank you enough. Your encouragement inspires us to keep writing stories._

 _Thank you Eva. You're awesome and brilliant and I'm so lucky to have you as my sister/partner._

 _Chapter title: 'Angry Words' by Willy Porter._

 _I did update 'Eyes Without a Face' yesterday._

 _Be safe and have a fantastic day. We'll see you next time._


	4. Hurt

_The pale light filtering in from the window compliments her gorgeous body. They stumble into his hotel room after spending a long afternoon at the beach. Damon was truly rendered speechless by the sight of her incredible bikini clad body. He can't wait to get his mouth and hands on her ample breasts. Just imagining those curvaceous legs wrapped around his middle does wickedly sinful things to his body._

 _As soon as he pushes the door shut with her body, he cups her face and drops his mouth to hers, taking her lips in a scorching kiss. After parting, their chests are heaving but they don't waste anymore time, immediately tearing off each other's clothes, her ragged breaths do scandalous things to his body already tortured by desire... for days now._

 _He's no saint but he's usually not this desperate in his nocturnal adventures either, he can always find a decent woman willing and eager to engage in an occasional one-night stand, no strings attached. But now, he's not even sure what he's doing here, with Elena. His usual caution, rigid control is gone. He completely ignores the little warning voice inside his head, the one that always reminds him to be careful? He feels her hot little fingers slipping into his boxers and fights the urge to just bend her over the closest armchair and have his way with her fast and hard._

 _"Damon...," he can hear her sighing into his ear, her lips touching it as they move. "I need you..."_

 _He's a goner._

 _He bends his head to suck on her neck and shoulder and can feel the goose bumps erupting on her skin. She's soft and smells so nice... He practically rips the top of her bathing suit off. His hands slide down immediately, pushing down on her skimpy bottoms to expose her beautifully sculpted behind along the way. The feel of her bare skin against his is exquisite and he falls to his knees helping her to step out of the black string trifle. His face falls forward to breathe her in for a few moments. Everything about her is magnificent. When she urges him upwards, he lifts her in his arms and sits her down on the table, stepping between her legs._

 _Without pause he enters her and muffles her cry with a deep sensual kiss. He's never known such wildness... or freedom. The primal urges he's feeling are making his head spin as she fills his every sense. He just can't stop and soon he's bending her over the armchair as he imagined earlier. She doesn't complain, holding onto the piece of furniture, biting the back of her hand to stay quiet._

 _Damon's aware he needs to slow down or all the pleasure will be his and he won't, he can't be selfish with her. His hand slips between her thighs bringing her closer and synchronizing the movement with his hips, teasing her in the process. Her body jerks and he drinks in the sight of her spine arching like a bow. She's not able to stay silent anymore and the sounds she releases pushes him closer to the precipice..._

 _His carnal desire is reaching a fevered pitch inside of him. It's new and glorious and all her. With a change of angle and a few flicks of his skilled fingers, he drags them both over the edge._

 _After a few moments when their breathing is almost normal and he can feel his limbs again, he helps her straighten up and both of them fall on the bed, exhausted by their intense intercourse._

 _"You okay?" he watches her curl up next to him._

 _"I am. More than okay," she smiles sweetly and her eyes shine like stars. "You...?"_

 _Is there a bit of uncertainty? Doesn't she know he's absolutely... blown away by her mere presence, let alone making love? Was it? Making love? He's not sure because he's never felt like this. The thought isn't exactly pleasant but it is what it is, he's not able to change it. So he brings her closer and gives her a kiss on the forehead._

 _"I am too. You're incredible. Can you stay? I don't think I'll be able to keep my hands to myself for long..."_

 _Elena giggles happily and throws herself onto his chest. "I think you'll have to show me..."_

 _He starts kissing her and... Was that a ring? He scrambles around for his phone trying to shut it up. "Sorry, Elena, I'm going to turn it off..."_

"Elena?"

As he slowly comes to his senses he's aware something is very wrong. He's holding his phone and the silence on the other side is deafening.

"Hello?" he tries carefully.

 _"It's me Damon."_

Vanessa. _Crap._

"Hey, Ness, I'm sorry about that."

" _Well.., you didn't call back last night, I was worried."_

Her voice is different, he can tell. _Crap. Crap. Crap._

"I'm so so sorry honey, it was a horrible evening. It didn't go well and I had a few drinks..."

 _Vanessa's immediately full of concern. "Oh, it didn't go well? She doesn't want..?"_

"Nope, she wants _to talk._ I have no idea why but I'm afraid I'm going to have to hear her out. I'm sure she will sign but for now I can't do much, you know? Luckily I have no lecture today so I'll see if she's available to get it over with."

 _"Alright Damon, I have classes to get to, talk to you later?"_

"Yes of course, I'm sorry. I promise I won't forget again?"

He falls back on the pillow once he ends the call, still in shock... how did this actually happen?

* * *

After a long sleepless night Elena is feeling a little surly this morning. Having spent so many years with her, Enzo knows her too well, every quirk, every idiosyncrasy, every mood. He's already finishing breakfast when she storms into the kitchen. He must have snuck out of the bedroom when she finally dozed off. When she slams the cupboard door after pulling out a mug, he barely looks at her. She pours herself a cup of coffee and takes a swallow, their eyes meeting when he pulls out his phone and hands it to her.

"What's that for?" Elena asks but still takes the phone and puts it to her ear. "Elena speaking?"

 _"Hey, Lennie."_

Elena sighs and gives Enzo a nasty look. "Mom?"

 _"I just called to check up on you. Enzo mentioned that you didn't sleep well last night. I wanted to make sure you are alright."_

"I am mom. I promise. I'm just overworked and... Well, you know these interviews, promotions and next there will be premieres to attend."

 _"You should clear your planner and come home for a few days. Ask, no I changed my mind, you tell your manager to arrange it."_

She can see her mother's smiling face in her mind and that's all it takes to make her feel better. "I will mom. I'm not going to pay him when all he does is annoy me." She looks at Enzo who feigns offense and knows he once again has her back.

 _"Alright, baby girl, let me know when you're coming, I'm looking forward to seeing both of you."_

"I suppose the weekend will work. Bye mom. And thanks!"

She hands Enzo his phone, walks around the chair he's sitting on and embraces his shoulders from behind. "Thank you..."

Enzo squeezes her hands and nods. No more words are needed.

* * *

Feeling the sun bathe his face, Damon slaps his forearm over his eyes. Damn, he forgot to make sure the curtain was closed tightly. Slowly he pulls his arm down and turns his head to glance at the clock on the bedside stand, he must've dozed off again.

He breathes a sigh of relief that he didn't have another erotic dream staring his wife instead of his fiancé. If he had said her name while in bed with Vanessa, he shudders to think what would happen. Lazily he drags himself out of bed. After calling room service to order breakfast, he showers and gets dressed, finishing up just as his food arrives. Knowing what he has to do afterwards, he takes his time eating and enjoying the pot of coffee. Finally he can delay it no longer so he picks up the phone and hits her number. He releases the breath he was holding when she answers.

 _"Damon?"_

"Good morning, Elena."

 _"No sense beating around the bush, are you free today?" she pauses waiting for his reply._

"I am and I couldn't agree more, we need to get this over with."

 _"You can come here anytime it suits you, I'm not going anywhere."_

She tells him the address and ends the call without delay. Damon already feels irritated, although he can hardly hold her responsible for the erotic dreams he's been having. He suspects they're the primary reason for his rather jumpy mood. _Dreams like that aren't exactly the best thing to have on his mind when they need to do some heavy soul-searching._ He already anticipates the conversation being brutal.

The taxi takes him to Malibu. When it pulls to a stop at the address she gave him, he's quite stunned by it's grandeur. It's a two story brick laden exterior. He suspects the ocean front view is even more luxurious than what he can see from here. There are huge windows, a three car garage, it's simply opulent, that's the only word that comes to mind. Walking up to the front door, he pushes the bell and waits for a few minutes till the door finally snaps open. Elena in all her glory stands aside and lets him in. He feels strange to say the least, walking through her home, _their_ house, unable to shake the feeling that he doesn't belong here.

The place is big and spacious, the rooms huge. There's a sitting room with a big fireplace, chairs and a table surrounding it. There's a spiral staircase and he's surprised to see a pool table.

 _"Do you play?" Damon asks, nodding his head towards the pool table._

 _"A couple of times."_

 _Elena smiles at him. He's simply mesmerized when she smiles like that, it's like falling, arms flailing helplessly as he drops into the looking glass. He takes her hand and leads her over to the table. After handing her a cue, he racks the balls. She gestures for him to go first. With a wink he does so, pocketing two of them before missing his next shot. Damon steps aside so she can have her turn. She promptly runs the table. Knowing that he's been had, he can do nothing but take her in his arms and kiss her senseless._

When he hears his name, he snaps out of his reverie. She points on the left and leads the way through the house to the patio. _Of course, there must be a pool._ A pool when the Pacific Ocean is just a couple hundred feet away. And then there's Enzo stretched out on one of the lounge chairs, sun glasses and a drink in his right hand.

"Damon."

"Enzo," he tries hard not to let his disgust for this guy show.

Elena looks between the two, knowing full well they would come to blows if she leaves them alone. "I'm going to get something to drink. Damon? Enzo?"

Damon waves his hand, "The usual."

"I'm good," Enzo grimaces, "I'm just leaving." Elena nods and disappears into the house.

Enzo collects his things and gives Damon a mocking salute. "Professor." Damon would gladly give him a 'fuck you' gesture but Enzo would certainly laugh at him so he resists. Elena's back in no time her hands full and when Enzo passes her on his way into the house, he caresses her arm as a show of support. For some reason the gesture makes Damon feel sick inside. Hence he's more abrupt than intended when thanking her for the drink.

 _He wishes he could just knock it back but he'd already imbibed in a couple before he left the hotel. It would hardly be wise to have this conversation with less than a level head._ He casts a stealthy look at her. _She's not even nervous._

She hands him his drink and after sitting down herself, she takes a sip and then shifts in her chair so she's facing him. "Who's the lucky girl, Damon?"

Damon's taken aback by the sudden question, although he should have expected it. "Ehm, does it really matter?"

"I suppose not, but she must be extraordinary if she inspired you to pursue another marriage? You're not an impulsive man."

"I wouldn't say that... It's Vanessa. Vanessa Monroe."

"Your assistant?" the surprise in Elena's tone is evident. "Oh, I suppose it makes sense."

For the love of God he can't figure out why it makes sense to her. "Exactly what are you suggesting?"

"Well, she is pretty as well as being a member of the scientific community like you. The two of you have always been thick as thieves and have worked together for years now. It's a natural turn of events given your history with her and of course she adores you. She's a safe choice, I suppose," Elena shrugs, not giving away all of her thoughts on that matter.

Damon snorts, "You can hardly blame me for choosing wisely this time around. And yes, she's been always loyal so..."

"You don't need to explain, I was just curious."

"How have you been?" the question is out before he can give it a thought.

"I've done a few movies and TV appearances, received a Golden Globe for 'Tomorrow'. Have you...?"

Damon shakes his head 'no'.

"It's a...," she hesitates before she continues, "it's a historical romance, taking place in Eastern Europe. World War II to be exact..."

"Ah...hm hm," Damon's not quite sure what to say to this, he didn't see it after all.

"Otherwise we have a new house," she looks around, "we're not done with reconstruction yet.. But neither of us particularly enjoy having people working when we're here so mostly the contractors show up when I'm shooting or on location. Enzo is doing most of the supervising and if we're both gone, then my housekeeper, Angela takes care of it."

"What am I supposed to do with your things?" he blurts out because he can't listen to her small talk for another minute.

"You still have my stuff? Wow." she pauses, taking a long swallow. When she sees him staring at her, she sighs, "You can either throw them away or donate it to the Salvation Army or Good Will, maybe a women's shelter. I would have thought that you would've gotten rid of my belongings years ago."

"They're at the loft somewhere. I just wasn't sure what to do with them, I didn't know if you'd want them or not."

"When I was leaving... I took the things I considered important."

"Of course you did..." Damon mutters under his breath. Elena doesn't seem to be offended though.

"When I left, I thought I was done with it and everything else for good."

"Yes, because it's so much easier to run away than face your problems."

"I was doing you a favor, you wouldn't even look at me after... blaming me for what happened."

"What are you talking about, I didn't blame you for..."

"Really, Damon? Are you sure? Because that's exactly how it looked to me."

Damon wants to tell her she's wrong but the memories are already flooding into his mind and it hurts too much. He can't go there, not again, not after everything. "Why the fuck must we talk about this?"

"Language, professor," she almost smiles but then it starts squeezing her insides, she feels small and smaller and the knot in her stomach tighter and she bites her lip to make it stop. Damon doesn't seem to notice her turmoil and she gets it under control soon. "We... don't have to talk about it now, there was more to it anyway," her voice trails off for a moment as memories again bombard her mind. As soon as she regains her train of thought, she looks at him again. "Why do you think I left you?"

"I don't know, because you wanted to pursue your career? Because you realized that family life... a life with me wasn't enough? What was I supposed to think? We had problems, we had fights, yes, but what couple doesn't? Those things happen and most normal people don't just up and run away when they have a disagreement with their spouse. And then," he gestures all around at the magnificent house, "your smarmy boy toy marches into my house, collects the bags you'd already packed and you just... run away with him?"

"Don't you dare to bring Enzo into it, he had nothing to..."

"He was, _is_ your lover."

"Is that what you thought?"

"He's still here sharing a house with you and I haven't seen my wife for three years. What would you think if the shoe were on the other foot?"

"And it's your business why? You have a _fiancé_ at home lying in wait for the moment I sign the damn papers."

"And why don't you? Elena? There's nothing left in this marriage? It was one big incredibly foolish mistake!"

Elena's taken aback by the venom in his tone. She's sick and tired and beginning to question why she started this or thought it was even necessary.

"There _is_ something left in this marriage... you and me and a pile of unanswered questions."

They won't get anywhere today, he knows. They're both too wounded and agitated to continue this conversation.

"I can't do this anymore. I'm going to go back to my hotel." He gets up and when their eyes meet he's shocked to find a broken look in there. "I'll call you tomorrow. I have lectures in and around LA for the next two weeks. I hope it's enough for you to be satisfied."

It's harsh, but he can't play nice now. All she has to do is sign and then they'll never have to see each other again. He doesn't wait for her to show him to the door. He quickly throws back his drink, slams it down on the patio table and goes back into the house, meandering his way through it till he finds the front door. On the way he calls a cab and nods to Enzo when he sees him sitting at the kitchen table. He gives him a dark look but Damon can't deal with it right now. He slams the door behind him, walking to the main road to wait for the cab, luckily he doesn't have to wait long.

When the vehicle turns back towards LA he casts his eyes at the house one more time. He's not sure if his eyes are deceiving him or if she's really standing behind the curtain, _watching him leave_.

* * *

Damon feels strangely calm after he has another glass of his favorite bourbon, calls Vanessa and takes a shower. It felt good to wash away this horrible day. He sits on the couch and lifts his legs on the armrest, leaning his head against the back rest and closes his eyes. The images aren't pretty but he knows he won't silence them tonight. The images of the worst time of their marriage will follow him into his dreams.

 _"Damon I can't just drop the movie before the end. There are contracts and terms that need to be met."_

 _"Yes, but when you signed it you weren't five months pregnant. There must be a proviso for it."_

 _"Even if there were, how could I throw over the people I've worked with for months? It would cost millions of dollars for them to put the project on hold and even then there's no guarantee that they'd finish it. A lot of these people are counting on those paychecks."_

 _"So you'd rather risk our daughter's life and your own."_

 _"I talked to the doctor, he said there's no reason to worry, everything's going smoothly and there are just two more weeks left of postproduction. I'll be back before you know it."_

 _Damon frowns and feels betrayed, disappointed that she won't even consider his wishes, not even if it's for her own good. This is not what she promised. This is not how a marriage, their marriage is supposed to work. Is her career that damn important to her?_

 _He shakes his head, "No matter what I say, you're going to do it anyway." It's not a question, more like a statement._

 _Elena hardens her gaze. "I'm sorry, I need to do this." The door clicks behind her with finality._

48 hours later he got _the_ phone call. There was an accident, Elena fell down a flight of stairs. She was in surgery for 6 hours. Their daughter didn't survive.

* * *

 _Let me caution you not to jump to conclusions about the reason for their breakup. There are more layers of the onion to peel back. Their story is both more complicated and more simple than the end of the chapter seems to suggest. Chapter five may provide a few more clues..._

 _For the anonymous reviewers, I cannot reply to you personally. I will tell you that Eva and I always write our stories to or near completion before I ever start to post them. That way Eva and I can work at our leisure, free of the pressure to update and our readers always get to see a completed story. I have enough pressure in my career, I don't want pressure stemming from something that is enjoyable for me._

 _Thank you all, you're the best in the DE fan fic universe. Eva and I are so in awe, overwhelmed really, by your kindness and support. We are 18 chapters into writing the new story with no end in sight ;)_

 _Chapter title: 'Hurt' by Johnny Cash._

 _Eva, I love you dearly, you're my better half, thank you for being on this journey with me._

 _I hope you all have a safe and phenomenal day and or evening wherever in the world you may be._


	5. Pain

Frustrated with her inability to fall asleep, Elena growls and shifts, her eyes landing on the 04:00 that's illuminated on her alarm clock. Raking her hand through her hair, she knows it's futile to keep trying so she gets up and slips a hoodie over her pajamas. She doesn't want to alarm or wake Enzo so very carefully she tiptoes through the house, slipping on her Birkenstocks as soon as she steps onto the patio. Once her feet touch the sand, she drops her eyes to them and kicks off her slippers. The cool sand sinks between her toes as she walks towards the water. She's always loved the feeling of the sand on her feet.

Upon reaching the water's edge, she drops down and brings her knees up. She wraps her arms around them and drops her chin to her legs. It's still dark but the sky is full of shimmering stars, she easily finds the big dipper. She has such fond memories of her and her dad star gazing with his telescope when she was a little girl. The sounds of the waves lapping on the shore line start to lull her restless mind and yet she still feels unsettled. _She knew he wouldn't be happy with her._

She stares at the water, it's glimmering under the light of the full moon, it's beautiful and mysterious. Standing up, she walks closer and gets her feet wet. The conversation with Damon was so much more painful than she could ever have imagined. He's still harboring so much anger and vitriol, not that she blames him really. His preferred method of coping has always been lashing out like an injured animal, wounding her with words.

Those relatively few minutes she spent with him hurt but strangely enough there are no tears left, not anymore, it's like it all happened to someone else, a different person, a different Elena.

Wading through the water, she feels the wet sand squeeze between her toes. She's loves the ocean. It was hard for her to leave the west coast and move to New Orleans, for him though, she gladly made the sacrifice but now...

Pausing she glances towards the sky, a sad smile on her face. The first colors of the sunrise begin to peek, oranges, yellows and pinks. Although she'd rather still be asleep, she loves to be able to witness the sunrise too.

If she could go back and start all of this again, would it make any difference? Would she change who she was to be with her professor? Three years after the disaster, she still has no idea. Despite the acrimony between them, she still cares about him, how could she not?

Out of nowhere, she experiences a strange sensation of someone watching her. _Enzo?_ She turns her head back to the house but it's still dark. Elena is pretty sure that if he was awake, Enzo would join her on the beach. She looks around but nothing seems out of ordinary. Still the chilly feeling lingers. She follows her instinct, collects her slippers and jogs briskly back to the safety of her home.

* * *

After showering and dressing casually in a pair of yoga pants and sports bra, Elena trots down the stairs and into the kitchen. As usual, Enzo is ready, handing her a cup of strong coffee.

"Kol called. You left your phone down here," he pauses, handing it to her. "Anyway, he said he was going to stop by later to pay us a visit. If you want my two cents worth, he's in dire need of his daily dose of Elena snuggles," he laughs, tipping his mug to her before taking a long swallow. "I swear he's a child in an adult's body."

Elena's lip twitches. "Enzo! You are so hard on him sometimes. Everybody loves Kol."

"Yeah, well, he shouldn't forget that it's thanks to you. It was you who suggested him for the part. That role earned him several nominations and as it seems endless popularity. Without you, he would be just another soap opera star. That is where you plucked him from obscurity."

"Have you forgotten that my first role was on a soap opera too?" she asks, quirking an eyebrow at him. When he says nothing, Elena smiles at Enzo's grumbling.

"I haven't forgotten, Elena. But he's just Kol. I don't know what else to say but because he puts a smile on your face, I'm glad he stops over to check on you now and then. But," he predicates, pointing his finger at her, "If you ever tell him that, mark my words, my revenge will be sweet."

He winks at her then pours himself a second cup before reaching into the refrigerator to pull out some cantaloupe and hands it to her.

Elena laughs, "If you say so… but I'm almost certain that he comes over to see you as well."

Enzo finally chuckles and helps himself to some of the fruit. "Of course, because he wants me to take him under my wing so his sorry ass won't drop off the radar in the blink of an eye."

"Be nice, Enzo."

"Listen,' he starts again, "did you sleep at all? Because although I understand everything that you're going through, risking your health is not an option. I saw you on the beach at fucking 4:30 in the morning."

"Ah, it was you…," her reaction is not exactly what he expected.

"What you mean it was me?"

"I just had a funny feeling that someone was watching me. I'm not gonna lie, it freaked me out a bit so I ran back home." She pauses to take a bite of her cantaloupe. Once she swallows it, she takes another sip of coffee. "You could have joined me, you know?"

"But I didn't follow you, Elena... I looked around and after I saw you, I figured you wanted to be by yourself so I went back to bed."

They both look at each other, mixed feelings mirrored on their faces.

* * *

As soon as he steps into his hotel room, Damon loosens his tie and plops down on the couch. He had a good day, his lecture was quite productive it feels good to have some semblance of control. He feels more like himself and mainly he's glad that he didn't forget to call Vanessa this morning before he left to wish her a good day. After showering and having a pleasant breakfast, the audience was very attentive, asking good questions and gave him a rousing round of applause when he completed his talk.

Sighing, he relaxes back into the couch, his head falling back. He stares at the ceiling for a little while and after some downtime, he finally feels confident enough to call Elena. They need to move on and complete their _conversation_ so he can get back to his fiancé. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. Holding a breath, he pushes her icon, _why does he still keep it?_ He waits several rings and is about to hang up when he hears Enzo's voice on the other end of the line.

"Damon, sorry man, she's napping, she didn't sleep at all last night so I'm not waking her up. But if you want to partake in another private _lecture_ , you can come over after four... NOT before."

"Ha ha, very funny! Are you sure she'll be _available_ later or are you just shitting me? You're the last one I need to take advice from. I just want to get the papers signed, so..."

"Well, it _is_ funny, Professor because I have many things that I would like to say to you, however, she wouldn't like it so I keep my mouth shut. So yes, she will be ready to see you later this afternoon."

Fuming, Damon pulls the phone away from his mouth for a minute. He takes a deep breath and then snaps, "You're sure?"

"See you Damon!" Enzo sing-songs and ends the call.

Damon has a feeling that one day he'll lose control and hurt that man.

* * *

By the time the cab pulls up in front of Elena's home, his stomach is roiling. He needs to stay on message so he tries to silently give himself a pep talk. It's a little after 4 when he pushes the doorbell. While he waits, he happens to notice the shiny black Mercedes sitting in her driveway. Taking a breath, he appreciates the beauty of such quality German craftsmanship. It dawns on him that it must be Enzo's toy. In his mind, it's more of a guy car. His eyes snap towards the door when he hears a noise.

Enzo opens the door and holds it open for him, Damon greets him with a nod.

"Sorry, we have a visitor, but she won't keep you waiting for too long."

"Do you always speak for her?" Damon tries to keep his voice void of any irritation.

"Always," Enzo replies sweetly with a smirk on his face. "Anytime she needs me to. It's my job." He gestures for Damon to follow along as he leads him through the house and outside to the pool area. He's taken aback but tries to hide it when he sees another guy, laughing loudly, his hand on Elena's knee. Probably another actor or filmmaker, he surmises.

"Kol, this is Damon Salvatore. He and Elena are old acquaintances. Damon, this is Kol Mikaelson, Elena's "Tomorrow" co-star. And yes, he's a good friend too," Enzo adds with an eye roll when he sees Kol about to protest.

"Hey," Kol blurts out, "Are you _the_ Damon Salvatore?" He quickly stands up to offer his hand. "My older brother is absolutely crazy about your books. I swear he was the first in line when they started to sell tickets for your lecture next week. He is going to be so jealous," Kol squeals, high-fiving Elena.

Damon shakes his hand, a little taken aback but pleasantly surprised nonetheless.

"Elena, why didn't you tell Elijah that you knew the Professor? You know he's a huge fan."

"Damon and I haven't seen each other for years, Kol. I rather doubt that Elijah would ask for an autograph and Damon doesn't exactly hang out with people in our line of work," Elena chuckles but Damon can tell it doesn't reach her eyes. She looks tired.

"Oh well, we can tell him now." Kol's enthusiasm is not easy to contain, "I hope you'll consider meeting my brother, he's not me, he's actually interested in art and history and that boring stuff. You won't be disappointed."

"What he means," Enzo interferes, "is.. if you need a sponsor, Elijah Mikaelson is the right person to talk to. Half of the exorbitant sums of money he spends goes to his charities and for research grants. History and art are his hobbies."

Fuming inside Damon wants to ask them who in the hell they think he is, begging for funds, he silently scoffs at the notion. Before he opens his mouth to rebut, he realizes that the Dean would want him to talk with any potential benefactors. He deflates quickly, they're all actually being _sweet._

That feeling lasts all of about thirty seconds because suddenly he feels disgusted by everyone in this room, including himself. He's not aware of the emotions that he's expressing on his face but he does try to maintain a neutral façade especially when he notices Elena watching him.

"Hey Doc, tell us what you thought about "Tomorrow'," Kol addresses him again. "Elena should have won the Oscar, right? She was incredible in it. I actually feared to touch her many times, she was so fragile, losing weight to play the part, as did I but that's a side matter. She played the part so spot on, the poor mute girl who had such strength. While we were shooting, I didn't even realize how it was her who pulled me through the scenes, it was _magical._ I don't think I'll ever have another experience like that. It was that powerful." He extends his hand and squeezes Elena's knee again.

Damon really doesn't know how to react to _this._ These people are from a totally different world. They clearly feel like royalty, they're touchy and feely with each other, he feels nauseous seeing this guy's, this Kol's paws on her and Enzo's okay with it? _Fucking unbelievable._

"Cut him some slack, Kol, he didn't see the movie, he's dedicated to his art and science... that world," Elena speaks before he can and Damon actually feels a little bad that he didn't, clearly it's a big deal _to some people._

"No?" Kol almost drops his glass. "Seriously man, you really missed her award winning role? Movies are art, different from what you study but art nonetheless. I'm going to have to remedy that, I have a copy of the film at home. I like to look at myself," he teases, playfully squeezing Elena's knee. Damon's eyes drift between the two of them. He knows the guy is friendly but he can still see the wall that exists between their world and his.

Elena stands up and motions for him to follow. "Well, Kol, I need to go, I promised Damon that we'd catch up but feel free to stay and chat with Enzo. We can talk more later?" she bends to him and Kol pulls her down for a short hug and a kiss placed somewhere between her neck and shoulder. He grins at Damon over her shoulder before he lets her go.

"I don't know, I may take you on your offer. Otherwise, I'll see you soon anyway."

"Of course, you know I'm always available to you," Elena waves at him, opens the patio gate and starts walking towards the beach after gesturing for Damon to follow.

Damon feels like a peon in a royal court, following her command like one of her other subjects would.

* * *

Elena takes a deep breath to fortify herself, again she motions for Damon to follow along.

For some reason Damon looks back over his shoulder, not the least surprised when Enzo smirks at him. He loathes him but the guy is suave and cool enough to fit in 007's shoes without even having to put an effort into it. Her home is huge, the rear of the home faces the Pacific ocean and the place that she leads him to is a garden. It's a beautiful mix of roses, wildflowers, Palm trees, succulents and there's even a variety of fruit trees, all combine to provide for an almost surreal landscape.

He pauses a moment to take in the full effect, it's then that he even sees a small plot filled with tomato plants. This place is so much more than he can afford but he knows her well enough to deduce that it's a sanctuary for her. They continue on without words finally ending up in a small but airy summerhouse. Besides the enthralling view, the Malibu bluffs, it's fully equipped with all the amenities including a fridge and a mini bar.

"Comfy," Damon comments as he relaxes for the first time now that they're free from Enzo and that Kol guy. Not that he wanted to be alone with _her.._ but truthfully they've always been at their best when they're free from the people that inhabit her world.

Elena hands him his favorite bourbon, she settles for a beer. "Yeah, it's comfortable, we both like it here a lot. Not only is it a wonderful place to relax but the best part is that we can have our privacy. At this hour, it's too hot by the swimming pool, one sunburn was enough for me to learn that. I do enjoy the view of the ocean, watching and listening the waves as they crash onto the beach. The bluffs are gorgeous. Sometimes Enzo and I go hiking out there."

Damon presses his lips together at the " _we_ " although he's well aware it's completely ridiculous that the word irritates him. But no matter where they are or are not in their nonexistent relationship, Enzo just rubs him in the wrong way.

Elena opens her mouth to _explain_ Kol, which is quite a herculean task in and of itself, but then she thinks better of it, there's no reason to try to get Damon see him for what he is, a _fucking_ good talented actor with a big heart and soul of a child.

Why does she feels the need to explain anything? _Old habits die hard._ Damon would never want to spend the time getting to know him, he's too complacent, preferring instead to hang around with other likeminded intellectuals. Quite frankly, Kol is a gem and for Damon to shun such a good man is his loss.

She's quite surprised at her own thoughts and her instincts have always been spot on but not with Damon. Never did she imagine that they'd find themselves here, in this awkward, even hostile place. Even though she's voluntarily put herself here, with him, alone, she knows that she needs it. Not because of some misplaced and malicious need to punish him or to rub her truth in his face but because she needs answers. Is there really nothing left of _them..._ or was there ever a _them_ in the first place? For just once she needs to see the great professor Dr. Damon J. Salvatore as a mere mortal.

Damon clears his throat, startling her out of her reverie.

"Sorry," she looks aside, "I just have a lot on my mind."

"Look, Elena, I understand this is hard but it's also completely unnecessary. There's no need..."

"Have you ever picked up your phone to call me? Did you ever even consider it at all in the last three years? Have you?"

Damon freezes in shock but he quickly recovers. "You have no right to ask me that, I hate to repeat myself..."

"How long was it before you decided that you waited long enough? What amount of time did you consider decent before you hopped into bed with Vanessa?"

"Pot meet kettle," he snaps. He throws back his bourbon and then grabs the bottle and pours himself another. He levels a disdainful glare at her, "Don't you think that you being with Enzo precludes you...?"

"How long did it take before you packed my things and shoved them to the loft?"

"Elena..." Damon starts losing patience, her name from his mouth sounds like a warning. However Elena's opinionated and strong and won't back down.

"How many of your colleagues and friends even know that you're a married man?"

"This is not fair!"

"How many of those who do _know,_ have any of them ever heard you mention who your wife is?" she lowers her voice and continues as it doesn't look like he's going to take initiative.

"How many of my movies can you name?"

Damon's just opening his mouth to tell her what he thinks about her brand of "therapy", he's in total shock this is even happening when the bushes next to the summerhouse crackle. Elena's head jerks in that direction and he can see she's rather shaken.

"Hey!" Damon jumps up and runs outside catching up with a stranger blundering among the trees and bushes. He's got an athletic build, curly black hair and a few days worth of scruff coloring his face. Damon launches at him, tackling him to the ground. As soon as he subdues him, Damon pulls him to his feet but maintains a firm hold on him.

"Who are you? Why are you trespassing on private property and lastly what are you doing here?"

"I know who he is! He's a journalist. Atticus Shane is his name," Elena offers and Damon's not sure how long she can hold up.

Atticus looks shaken himself and Damon would almost feel sorry for the guy but he does have a camera and there's no way he didn't know what he's doing. The raised voices attract Enzo's attention and he comes running towards them. Without a pause, he punches Atticus so hard that he sends him crashing onto the sand.

"Start explaining!" he yells, Damon can't believe this is the same Enzo, the one he despises. "And for your sake I hope it's good or I'm calling the police."

Damon helps the journalist to his feet, although there _is_ an urge to give him one more beat down, seeing how Elena's psyched-out. Enzo too turns his focus on her and takes her into his arms. He looks at Atticus again.

"Don't even think of taking any pictures. Actually...," he motions for him to hand him the camera. Before Atticus can react Enzo snatches it, takes out the memory card and puts it in his pocket, then gives the camera back to the intruder.

"Here, you can sue me. But you can make bank on one thing, I'll make your life a living hell."

His eyes dart from Damon to Enzo and when he sees Damon's free hand closing into a fist, he silently runs away as soon as he can feel the grip loosen on his shirt.

Damon looks at the two of them and feels he should give them some privacy. He takes a walk along the beach. For some reason, the thought of going back to his empty hotel room doesn't sound appealing right now.

* * *

When he gets back to Elena's home, he is shocked when Enzo doesn't even ask him, he simply hands him a plate. Damon finds himself thinking about the bane of his existence. However he isn't going to give him the satisfaction of getting into it with him. Instead he bites into the great big cheeseburger. It has a huge piece of ground beef, cheese, barbecue sauce, bacon and onion rings all piled in a huge bun. It's delicious and he realizes that Enzo seems to be a man of many talents.

 _Not that he's any too pleased with himself at the thought of having to give the guy credit._

After dinner, Damon watches as Elena disappears around the house. He wipes his mouth, finishes what's left in his beer bottle and then follows after to tell her that he's leaving. They won't accomplish any more today anyway. He's a little surprised when she stays by the house rather than walk down to the water's edge, probably because of that bastard photographer. He doesn't understand a lot since he came out here, seeing her again has turned him inside out and yet he hates that she isn't doing something she loves because of that interloper. _Being a movie star must suck sometimes._

"Elena? I'm heading back to my hotel, we probably won't continue this..." he pauses not bothering with explanation, she surely understands.

"Yes of course you're right Professor, you're always right aren't you? I... if you want, just bring me the papers tomorrow morning. It's clear to me that you don't want to talk, you don't even want to be around me. I don't actually blame you, I guess it was a misjudgment on my part, a bad idea as you so aptly put..."

 _There it is...the golden ticket, his freedom, his way out._

But now Damon's not sure he wants to take it. There _are_ still many unanswered questions, on both sides. He swallows thickly, her resignation, her lackluster tone makes his heart tighten in his throat. The defeated and tired lilt to her voice, it's not her. He doesn't understand why it should make him feel funny inside but it does and rather than end it like this, he finds himself saying, "I'll call you tomorrow, Elena. I'll be here for another two weeks. We'll figure something out if it's this important to you."

"Isn't it important to you too? At least a little bit? To make things right?"

Damon shrugs and doesn't reply, he'd have to tell her nothing can make the situation right, not at this point. He could drive the dagger in and end it all right now but he cannot do that to her, even the thought of doing it... _hurts._

His taxi is already idling on the road in front of her home. Elena about to close the door behind when he grabs it, stopping her. He pauses because there's still one thing bugging him.

"Elena?"

She turns back to him again, waiting for his question.

"Why did you ask me all the questions, why _those_ questions? Were you making a point or...?"

Elena sighs, but doesn't deny him a response.

"Because, Damon... I honestly don't think you ever really loved me."

* * *

 _Eva and I are so grateful for all of your encouragement, support, incredible reviews, following and making this one a favorite. It's difficult to find the right words to tell you all how incredibly thankful both Eva and I are for all of you._

 _Thank you too, Eva. LOVE. YOU. DEARLY._

 _Chapter title: 'Pain' by Three Days Grace._

 _Many dear friends have stories in progress. Short on words has 'A Wonderful Lie' in progress, she recently returned to it after an extended hiatus. Mariah April May has two fabulous stories: 'The Devil's Obsession' and 'Marry Me Instead'. Florencia7 has authored many incredible DE and Capt. Jack Sparrow tales, JustiniaKorax has her already amazing 'The Things She Felt While He Was Gone. Salvatoreboys4ever's romantic-thriller 'Captive of Her Beauty' continues. TheLittle MissVixen just started new, 'Before The Devil Knows You're Dead, schattentinte,_ _StarlightSo, Amazing Aisha, and VitsAsh are among so many others who are keeping Damon and Elena alive through their stories._

 _We have an ICEM Valentine coming..._

 _I hope you all have a fantastic day and thank you all again. Until next time._


	6. Mama, I'm Coming Home

Damon's sleep is anything but peaceful. Haunting dreams about Elena and their past, that so called journalist, Atticus Shane trying to kill her, Enzo kicking him out of their house, Vanessa trying to help him, Kol blocking her way grinning and laughing at her efforts, it's like cannonball fire, one volley after the next, his brain simply wouldn't shut off.

As an alarm clock keeps ringing in his dream it slowly pulls him to consciousness. He startles, he did it again. Overslept. Growling, he reaches for the phone with a loud bang when he knocks a reading lamp onto the floor. It almost jerks him to full alertness. _Almost._

"Vanessa?"

It takes him a second before he realizes there's a long silence on the other side.

" _It's me, Elena_." Her voice is noticeably colder.

"Hey, Elena, sorry. I overslept and didn't look at the display...," he tries but he can tell she isn't buying his bullshit.

" _It doesn't matter. I only called to ask about your schedule and to double check to see if you still wanted to come?"_

"I do. But I can't now. I have a conference to attend. I'm scheduled to give my lecture at 2 o'clock but I have no idea what time today's sessions will end. I suspect I'll be there all day."

" _It's alright.. But I made plans for the weekend so I won't be available later. I guess we'll have to figure something out next week."_

"Elena, come on?"

" _Don't let me keep you!"_ she sing-songs, ending the call before he can rebut her. He's left to stare at the phone, the dial tone blaring annoyingly in his ear. Frustrated, he slams it onto the mattress. By some stroke of luck it doesn't fall to the floor and shatter.

 _Oh crap!_

* * *

Damon is in his element, he so enjoys teaching and giving talks about his books. He's received many rounds of applause by the time he finishes his presentation. The question and answer period is a formality, not his favorite part, but it's a necessity. He frowns slightly when he glances at his wrist watch. He takes a swallow from his water bottle while pointing at a redheaded girl.

"Dr. Salvatore, can you share any ideas that you have for future books?"

"Actually yes, I am just beginning preliminary research on John Singleton Copley. He lived from 1738 – September 9, 1815. This man was an American painter, active in both colonial America and England. He is famous for his portrait paintings of wealthy and influential figures in colonial New England, depicting in particular middle-class subjects."

When people start waving their hands in the air again, he shakes his head back and forth. "No more questions. Thank you all for attending today. It was my great honor to be here." Damon smiles then exits the stage, relieved to finally be able to loosen his tie. He's satisfied with his lecture and having satisfied even the most ardent history fans. It's almost six, Damon swears under his breath. He spent more time answering questions than he had planned to.

Although he knows it's probably a futile gesture, he's determined to at least leave her a message. He'd very much prefer to arrange a meeting for tomorrow if she can find a few moments to spare. He dials Elena's number and waits. While walking outside, he contemplates his options. Just as he reaches his rental car, Enzo answers the phone.

"You've got to be kidding me," Damon mutters under his breath. "Enzo."

Enzo laughs heartily. " _Damon! My favorite nutty professor. Sorry buddy, she's not here."_

"Stop bullshitting me! Just put her on the phone."

 _"Can't. She's walked off to get herself a big cup of coffee."_

"Come on, Enzo, put her on the phone."

 _"No can do. We're at the airport."_

Damon's caught of guard. "You're leaving?" _Yeah, that was a stupid question._

 _"We are indeed. We're going to Hawaii for the weekend to visit Elena's mom."_

His throat tightens. "They moved her to Hawaii?"

 _"Not exactly, Damon. She miraculously woke up two years ago and after a long stay in rehab, Elena bought her a home in Maui. Miranda now lives there permanently. We visit her whenever we can. Surely you knew?"_

"No.. um, I didn't," he admits. It hurts more than he's willing to admit. He never got to meet Elena's mom, at least not personally. His only contact with her was sitting with Elena while her mother was laying unconscious in a comfortable facility room. And she never met him either. What did she think about Elena's marriage? It was already in its last gasps when she awakened. _What would she think of him?_ And now Enzo's the one joining Elena when visiting her mother.

 _"Still with me, Damon?"_

"Yes, I'm here. So I suppose you won't be back before next week?" He asks, waving for a taxi to pull over.

 _"Unless there's some kind of a flight delay, we should be back sometime on Monday. Elena is booked up Tuesday doing TV shots for the studio's PR department."_

Damon hears the loud sound of a flight being called through the phone. Before he can say another word, Enzo's voice breaks the momentary silence. _"Sorry Damon, need to run."_ With the sound of a click, Enzo ends the call.

Frustrated, Damon tosses the phone on the passenger seat. He sits there for a long moment before he finally starts the car to drive back to the hotel. He's more than ready for this day to be over.

* * *

Elena is sitting in the window seat, occasionally looking outside to take in the view. When she feels a nudge, she turns her head, taking the drink that Enzo hands her. She doesn't like flying which sucks because her job requires her to fly all over the world, sometimes on a moments notice. She whispers thank you and takes a swallow. Although she's not much of a drinker, she never turns down alcohol when it comes to airplanes. It seems to help her frayed nerves.

Enzo looks at her now and then but knows it would be futile to try to distract her. He presses his hand on top of hers and soon enough her eyes close and her breathing evens out. He relaxes and opens a book he picked up in the airport for the flight. He can't seem to concentrate though as he usually does when traveling. _Damon doesn't know Elena's mom? How strange._

But given the circumstances, he guesses it's really not so strange after all. She was trapped in a coma for almost two years. Although he knows most of the details of Elena's romance and marriage to Damon, he is quite certain that she still has a few secrets. From what he does know with certainty is that she and Damon were together for about a year before it blew up in their faces.

Enzo met Elena not long after she started her career. She wasn't a big name yet, still having a small role in the soap opera. At that time, she was under the wing of her mother's best friend, Esther Mikaelson, who also managed, still manages her son, Elijah Mikaelson's career. It took quite some time for Enzo to convince her that the two of them would make a great team and as much as Esther loves Elena, she wanted to focus her attention on getting her youngest son, Kol, groomed to enter the acting world. They've been together ever since and neither has any regrets.

After her mother's tragic accident, Elena's world tilted off its axis. Her mom was her best friend, advisor and mentor. She fell apart and Enzo was there to help her pick up the pieces. The doctor's didn't hold out much hope but Elena refused to give up and as soon as she was medically stable, Elena had her transferred to one of the top rehab facilities in the country. There she laid for almost two years. That all happened a few months before she met Damon.

While Enzo has never been that keen on the good Professor, he will give him due credit, the marriage probably saved Elena's sanity.

 _The problem is that he also destroyed it._

* * *

Enzo wakes her up once the plane begins its descent, frankly it's the worst part of the flight. He links their fingers after they both buckle up and wait for the plane to hit the runway. He feels good inside when he sees how excited Elena is already to see her mom. She's staring out the window but as soon as they feel the bounce, she tightens the grip till the plane slows down and begins to taxi towards their gate.

Once they step onto the concourse, Elena and Enzo follow the rest of the passengers as they make their way towards the luggage carousel. "Do you think mom will be waiting?"

"As if you even need to ask, you know she will," he laughs, giving her a wink.

She pulls her hand free and darts past him as soon as she sees her. "Mama!"

Miranda catches her and hugs her tightly. "Elena! I'm glad you're here." She pulls back and eyes her daughter closely, frowning when she sees the brown smudges under her eyes. "You certainly do need some rest," she adds, brushing her thumb across Elena's cheek. As soon as Enzo catches up to them, she takes him in a hug too.

"Enzo, good to see you."

 _Thank you for bringing her home to me._ He knows Miranda well and can easily read her thoughts _._

Elena is simply beaming, her smile is as wide as Enzo can ever remember as she looks at her mother's face. He will never tire of that smile, it's full of life and vigor. The three of them walk together to claim their luggage and while they wait, Enzo steps over to a kiosk to get them all something to drink.

Miranda is glowing too having her daughter here. There were so many times the doctors told Elena that a meaningful recovery was a very small possibility. Miranda had a heart attack while driving to see her and crashed her car. She obviously had a severe head injury in addition to the damage to her heart muscle. But Elena insisted that they do everything in their power to treat her. She laid in the intensive care unit for about three months, attached to a ventilator. Miranda still bears the scar in her throat from the tracheostomy. Once they were able to wean her from the machine, she was transferred to the rehab center.

She still has a little weakness on one side of her body, but it's nothing that hinders her activities. He's just so grateful that Elena got her mother back and he gained a trusted friend. When her rehab stay was nearing it's end, Elena and Enzo flew to Hawaii for a job. They fell in love with the place and knew it would be prefect for her mother to continue her recovery.

She bought a vacation home near the beach and when Miranda was discharged, the three of them flew here. Elena took six months off to stay with her mom. Miranda found her purpose again, finding herself a job as an activity director at the same kind of facility in Maui. She lives at the home full time. He and Elena visit as much as possible and occasionally Miranda flies back to the mainland too but Hawaii is paradise so usually if they want to see each other, it's he and Elena who hop on a flight.

As soon as their luggage starts falling onto the carousel, Enzo reaches for them, setting each one down as he retrieves them. Once they have everything, Miranda pats his shoulder and takes her daughter's hand.

"Let's go home kids, we're going to enjoy this weekend," she adds, leading them outside to the parking garage where her car is waiting for them.

* * *

 _"Damon!"_ Ric's voice sounds pleasantly surprised when he picks up the phone. _"How are you?"_

Damon mentally rolls his eyes. "I'm doing what you should be doing..., trying to get my wife sign the divorce papers," he adds sarcastically.

 _"That's not fair!"_ Ric feigns hurt.

He's clearly in a good mood. _Bastard._ Although loathe to admit it, Damon already feels better hearing his friend's voice.

Ric chuckles but then his voice becomes serious. _"No, really, Damon, how is it going? I mean, was it bad? She hasn't signed them yet?"_

"No she hasn't, she's not making it easy by any stretch of the imagination. She... wants to talk everything through, Ric."

 _"Hmm..., That's not an unreasonable request, Damon. I mean, it can't hurt, right?"_

"Are you being serious right now? You really think it's a good idea, opening up all those old wounds?"

 _"Well, Damon, it's not like you talked when she was leaving... I suppose it's better to get it all out in the open, not leave anything unsaid, no regrets..."_

"Regrets... ? She, she wants to talk about... her accident. When the baby died..."

It never gets easier for him to talk about that time in his life. Without realizing it, he finds himself rubbing his palm over his left fourth finger. Damon can feel the familiar tug at his heart and the thickness in his throat at the mention of her. He is ready to flee from this conversation. _And this is just Ric._

Ric sighs, he knows how good Damon became at denying the past, both Elena and the miscarriage. He buried his feelings deep and simply refused to talk about his loss, _their_ profound loss. As Damon's best friend, he also knows that it wasn't the only contributing factor that led to the disintegration of their marriage.

 _"Maybe it's time to talk about it, Damon. Get it all out in the open and maybe then you can let it go?"_

Damon falls silent for a minute, then voices what bothers him the most. "She said, I've never forgiven her. That I was mad." He realizes after a few moments that his friend has fallen silent. "Ric?"

 _"And have you, Damon? Forgiven her, I mean?"_

"What do you mean have I forgiven her? How can you even ask me that? It wasn't her fault, I know that, it was a tragic accident."

 _"Yes it was, Damon. Elena didn't do anything unreasonable. Lots of women work up to their due dates. But what I remember from that horrible time was that you were pretty much a dick about it. And you didn't want to talk to her and on the rare occasion when you would speak, your words were terse and sharp. It shouldn't be a surprise that she would think that?"_

Damon's stunned to silence, the truth of Ric's words slamming into him like a freight train. _Ric's right._ He's never forgiven her, at least he's never told her has. Neither has he ever made amends for his stupidity, he must have made her feel like crap. "Hindsight is bitch," he utters, pouring himself a stout drink.

Ric can sense his uneasiness and changes the topic to help him out. _"I saw Vanessa the other day. She's clearly enjoying teaching your classes. I think the students might be looking forward to your return though. She's pretty tough on them."_

"Yeah, Vanessa..," Damon mumbles half heartedly. But the truth is, the uneasiness still lingers, a maelstrom of guilt churning in his belly.

* * *

 _Elena is lying in a hospital bed, staring up at the ceiling. Feeling the uncomfortable stab of her incision, she shifts in bed, grimacing as she does. Her right hand is gripping the control button for the PCA, she gives it a push and feels the numbing warmth as the morphine begins to work again. She relaxes her fingers letting it fall from her grasp. Her cloudy eyes drift to her strangely flat stomach, she places her palms against it. she can't help but caress it every now and then but stops immediately at the odd empty feeling._

 _She's been awake for some time now. He has yet to come into her room. She knows he's somewhere in the building, the nurse told her so. Her heart clenches even more painfully at the truth, he's avoiding her, she's certain of it. The nurse confirmed as much when she told her that he was here. Surely they would have told him that she's now awake. Tears form in the corners of her eyes, she can't stop their descent down her cheeks at the thought that he doesn't even want to look at her._

 _How can she blame him when she doesn't want to look at herself either? Elena curls up into as tight a ball as her aching body will allow. She wishes that she could have seen her, held her just once. She again runs her fingers over now empty bump. Her cries are full of agony and despair. They're so loud that the depth of her pain can be heard echoing in the hallway. The nurse runs in and injects something into her IV and then everything is blissfully gone as she slips into the darkness._

 _By the time she wakes again, several hours have passed and now she knows, he isn't coming at all..._

She wakes up with a start, her mom's soothing hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry Elena, you were thrashing."

She shares look with Enzo and then with a nod, he gets up to give them some privacy. She swallows thickly and watches him disappear through he door. There are so many things she has to thank him for. Miranda sits next to her and lays her daughter's head on her lap.

"Was it about your baby?" she asks quietly, her hand stroking her daughter's silky soft curtain of hair.

Elena nods but is already calming down. It's like walking along a familiar well worn path. She's looking around, making out single pieces of furniture. There's a light shadow shining in from the window, spraying the light on a chest of drawers. Although it's too dark to make out the photos sitting on top, she knows they're family pictures of her and her mom when she was a child and then a teenager and finally one of her in her high school graduation garb. She shifts just slightly, her eyes meeting her mom's.

 _With her heart so heavy and her mind a mess of emotions, there is no other place she'd rather be than right here in her mother's arms._

"It wasn't just that... he's back, mama... he came to ask me for a divorce."

* * *

 _You're probably angry with Damon right now. Our erudite professor is beginning to see the first hints of sunlight, he's very much a work in progress in this story. He will be taking an important little getaway of his own pretty soon._

 _My apologies for the late update. I was out of the house running errands all day yesterday._ _Eva and I want to thank you all so very much. You're an amazing group of people, we're in awe every day of the friendship and support you give us. Your encouragement inspires us to keep writing stories._

 _Thank you Eva. You're awesome and brilliant and I'm so lucky to have you as my sister/partner._

 _Chapter title: 'Mama, I'm Coming Home' by Ozzy Osbourne._

 _Please have a look at "Eyes Without a Face."_

 _Have a fantastic day and weekend. Thank you again, you're all the best. We'll see you next week._


	7. Old Wounds

_His eyes snap open when he feels someone joggling his arm. Damon quickly straightens his posture, excusing himself for startling the way he did. "Sir? Your wife is awake if you want to see her?" one of the nurses he saw taking care of Elena addresses him. He nods shortly, but his heart skips a beat. "Thank you."_

 _How can he face her?_

 _He knows she must be as devastated as he is and that he's supposed to be by her side be her supportive husband but... he just can't. Every time he thinks about her he loses it. He's fucking losing it because he remembers how vehemently he begged her to stay home, not to risk her or their daughter's life. And now she's... The nurse gives him a sympathetic look and he can't stand it. He doesn't want to lash out at her so he skirts around the woman and darts into the stairwell._

 _He finds a bench outside and sits down, finding himself staring into the hospital park. It's peaceful. It certainly isn't a reflection of how he feels inside, everything is a mess. His heart and head are a chaotic maelstrom. Rationally he knows she did nothing wrong but he can't think that way now, he can't seem to make sense of it. He doesn't want to fail her but he doesn't want to go up there and say something he knows that he'll regret later either._

 _And so he stays there for more than an hour trying to figure out what he can say. He's never felt so numb. He didn't ask for this. Maybe their pregnancy just wasn't meant to be... Just like their marriage..._

 _When he finally finds the courage to go to her, she's sleeping. He stays with her, pets her hand but when she starts to stir, he hurries out of the room._

Waking up with a start, Damon's eyes fly open. He stares at the pebbled ceiling watching the play of light from the thunderstorm outside. He sits up and drops his face into his hands. Of course he'd relive this old dream. It's the same one that plagued him for weeks after she came home from the hospital. He still had trouble looking at her without imagining what could have been. Maybe they just wasn't meant to be?

* * *

The little bits and pieces from the past keep coming back to Damon for the rest of the weekend. He is even forced to struggle with his emotions more than once. Not only that but he had to push "ignore" on a couple of Vanessa's calls because he was simply in no shape to talk to her. Most of the memories are from the weeks following the accident. _Damn Ric for asking if he blamed her?_

When Elena was finally discharged and came home from the hospital, the chasm only widened, they simply didn't talk about her or anything else. She wanted to, he knows she did but he always found an excuse that he was busy or he'd leave saying he had a meeting. Usually he'd end up dead drunk at some bar but when he found himself giving a fleeting thought to going home with a strange woman, he sobered up quickly. As bad as things were between him and Elena, cheating would have made it a million times worse. He may be a lot of things but he could never have done that to her, it would have been unforgiveable.

Despite him sobering up, things didn't get better at home. Elena was extra jumpy and hesitant. Anything and everything he said resulted in a flood of tears leaking from her eyes. Finally their ability to communicate all but evaporated. He couldn't watch her cry anymore so he would avoid her, writing late into the night, falling asleep on the couch in his den, often not joining her in their bed. In hindsight, he's not at all proud of how he acted during those weeks and months leading up to Elena's departure, her escape... _Escape._

Still it doesn't mean that what she did was right. Maybe if they had talked, if he had told her how much he really did care? _We hurt the ones we love the most._

"It's water under the bridge now," he says aloud to no one.

He talks to Vanessa on Saturday but she's with her sister and parents for the weekend. Their conversation is entirely unsatisfying so he cuts the call short. He tries to write and do some research on his laptop but his spirit isn't in it. Eventually, feeling irritated, edgy and restless, he finally gives up. Hell, he needs a stiff drink so he throws on a pair of jeans and tee shirt and goes downstairs to the hotel cocktail bar where he spends his evening with an endless glass of bourbon.

When the alarm clock starts blaring on Monday morning he's incredibly grateful that the weekend is finally over. He jumps out of bed and gets dressed, grateful to have something to do. He's giving another lecture followed by a Q & A. As much as he hates some of their inane questions, it's better than wallowing in this room being bombarded by unpleasant memories.

He walks in front of the mirror to take a last look before he leaves, he's pleased that he can finally focus on things that matter in his life now. Before he walks out of his suite, he calls home to wish Vanessa good luck for the day. When he gets downstairs, he goes into the cafeteria to have some breakfast and a pot of stiff coffee. He finishes with plenty of time to get to the Cal State University campus.

The day goes well, exceeding his expectations. Somehow he knew it would but it still didn't quite measure up to the one he had last Thursday. It was a good day nevertheless. He reaches down to take a swallow of water, announcing one last question before he puts the bottle to his mouth. When someone yells out, his head snaps to the person asking.

"Have you ever been married Dr. Salvatore?"

"Sorry, Mr...?"

"Atticus Shane, Celebrity magazine."

Damon slowly chuckles along with some people in the audience. He doesn't want to answer so he tries to stall the annoying reporter.

"I'm flattered, Mr. Shane that I'm now considered a celebrity..., but I really don't think your question has anything to do with the material we discussed here today. Last one!" He turns away from the reporter and after answering one last question, he hurries off the stage to try to make a getaway before Shane catches up to him. All of his senses are on alert and well aware of the nosy scribbler's presence.

Not surprisingly when Damon leaves the building, Atticus is waiting nearby.

"What do you want?" Damon doesn't bother with a polite tone, the guy has no business trying to pry into his personal life.

"I'm sorry Mr. Salvatore, I was just hoping to ask you a favor."

Damon looks at him skeptically.

"I would like you to pass on my apologies to Miss Gilbert, you know, for the other day. I didn't mean to intrude your evening or trespass on her property. I happened to be in her neighborhood and I couldn't let the opportunity pass. My boss is a son of a..."

"Ehm.. Quite frankly, Mr. Shane, I find that hard to believe. Surely you got a few points for being in her neighborhood in the first place. I rather doubt your magazine offices are located in that area of Malibu."

"Well, um, I may have rented a place in her neighbor... But the point is, I'd be very grateful if you would be so kind as to pass on my sincerest apologies. She's a nice lady unlike Mr. St. John but of course I can't blame him either. Will you, professor? Please? When you're such good friends..."

"And you still keep fishing... ?" Damon points out, raising an eyebrow at him. _You know better Damon._ He pauses for a few moments. "Alright Mr. Shane, I'll tell her that you're sorry but if you ever bother her again, I will take very much pleasure in kicking your sorry ass into next week. As you aptly put it, she's a nice lady and doesn't deserve this crap. Are we clear?"

Shane nods his acceptance, Damon returns the gesture and leaves him behind. As soon as he reaches his car, he crawls in and drops his forehead against the steering wheel. _What could have possessed him to stick up for Elena?_

* * *

"Are you sure you're going to be alright, El?" Enzo looks doubtful but Elena certainly doesn't need him to babysit her 24/7, even the most functional of relationships need a break every once in awhile. And when it's also about working together, the last thing she wants is to suffocate him by her constant presence.

"It's just two days Enzo, I'm certain I can handle it," she rolls her eyes, although she knows he won't buy the act. She _will_ miss him and the sense of safety he provides. However, she's not some fragile flower though that's going to wilt and dry up.

"Ok, I know you won't change your mind here, but you should wait with the soul-searching until I get back. Your professor has waited this long, he can wait a little longer."

"You're incorrigible."

"You love it..." he winks, "but seriously, if you need some company while I'm gone, call Kol. He'll be more than happy to follow you around like a lost little puppy."

Elena laughs and smacks Enzo's bottom. "Now you're just being mean. And jealous!"

Enzo sticks his tongue out at her and dodges the pillow she throws at him. "Oh, and Elena, if that slimy journalist so much as sticks his nose where it doesn't belong, just call the police."

Despite the reassurances, Elena knows it won't be easy with all the memories coming back, but she feels much better after the weekend they spent with her mother. Miranda has always had a sixth sense, knowing what her daughter was going through without Elena needing to say a word. She tried to convince them to stay a few more days but because she had some previously scheduled interviews planned for the middle of the week, they just couldn't stay.

Instead Enzo promised her that they would come back soon. They said their goodbyes on Monday morning and she was already calling Enzo before they walked in the door of their home. Elena smiles, she's so lucky to have her mom.

She stands by the floor to ceiling window watching him drive away. Just before he's out of her field of vision, he flashes his lights and waves. Sighing mentally, Elena straightens the curtain and takes a deep breath. _I can't put it off any longer._

She reaches for her phone and pushes _his_ icon, identified simply as "Professor" and sits back comfortably, waiting for him to pick up the call.

* * *

The ring tone rouses Damon from a light slumber, the TV really doesn't provide anything stimulating for a decent, well educated man like himself. He stretches and then sits up so he can pick it up. His first mistake is not checking the caller ID. The cheerful voice on the other end of the line is the last one he wants to hear right now.

" _Hey Damon_?"

"Enzo," returns Damon unenthusiastically. He rolls his eyes and sits up a big straighter.

 _"Look.. I just wanted to have a word with you. I have to be away for a few days. Unfortunately I can't postpone my business. As such, it's entirely possible that Elena will be crazy enough to try to arrange another meeting with you. The reason I called is that you need to know that just because I won't be around doesn't mean that I won't hunt you down and make your life miserable, meaning, I will hurt you... if you upset her. You got that?"_

He grimaces, "Hmmm? It seems that someone, namely you, is feeling a little insecure?" Damon pauses waiting for Enzo to retort but he says nothing. He drops his forehead into his hand in frustration before adding, "Don't fret, Enzo. I'm not going to make any moves on _your_ girl... it's not my style... not anymore."

 _Does he sound bitter? Damn it Damon, pull yourself together._

 _"You know professor, one of these days I'm going to sit you down and explain in terms that even you can understand, all the ways that you're an idiot. But right now, I have to end our little chat, I have a plane to catch. Bye Damon," he sing songs before hanging up._

Somehow he miraculously stops himself from cursing out loud. He throws the phone on the couch then gets up to make himself a stiff drink. After taking a long pull he refills it, makes himself comfortable and tries to close his eyes but the specter of Enzo keeps disturbing the peace he seeks in his dreams.

 _Enzo has one of Elena's bags slung over his shoulder, her larger suitcase is on the floor next to him. They size up each other. The normally chatty Enzo looks like a stormy night and doesn't say a word. Elena comes down with another bag that Enzo silently takes from her hand and turns to the door._

 _"You're going to do it aren't you? You're really going to leave with him?"_

 _"Please don't make this harder than it already is." She looks at him with those big sad doe eyes of hers. They still hold so much power over him._

 _"If you walk out of that door..." Damon threatens, gesturing at it with a slight turn of his head._

 _"I'm sorry Damon, I can't stay with you for another minute. I'm dying here. And you're not happy either. I know you want to deny it but deep down, you know it's for the best too."_

 _Damon tries to stop her one more time but Enzo, who in the meantime had put Elena's luggage into his car, steps in his way._

 _"You've been waiting for this, haven't you? Don't try to deny it. I'm no fool, Enzo. You're like a scurvy little spider spinning your little web. You lie in wait for the fly to get caught. And when the moment presented itself, you pounced. Suddenly you're the knight in shining armor swooping in to rescue her from her nutty professor."_

 _"You, professor, lost the right to say anything. She's no longer your concern." Enzo slams the front door, closing off the only connection between Elena and himself._

Having just barely drifted off from the effects of his bourbon, Damon slowly awakens to yet another phone call. _Unbelievable!_ He grabs it, luckily he takes a look at who's calling him.

"Elena," he acknowledges, "you're home?"

Taken aback by his frosty greeting, Elena feels her heart pounding in her throat. She's no coward though, she will go through with what needs to be done.

 _"Yeah, I thought I'd let you know. We arrived this afternoon and I was wondering if you perhaps wanted to..."_

"Sure, it is high time to... never mind. I just woke up. What time would you like me to come?"

 _"I thought maybe tomorrow..."_

"I have a lesson in the morning but I'm free in the afternoon."

 _"Okay? I'll be waiting..."_

"How is your mother?" Damon finds himself asking.

 _"She's good, thank you. She keeps herself busy, leading a special program for kids with special needs, still teaching her beloved drawing courses. She woke up about two years ago and found a new home at Hawaii. Can't believe it's been already two years since the nightmare ended..."_

Nightmare... how perfectly apropos. He could say the same about the state of their marriage. Although the biting comment is sitting on the tip of his tongue, Damon chokes it back. He doesn't want to upset her over the phone so he swallows his hurt and expresses how glad he is that Miranda is doing well. He's prepared to end the call when Elena speaks up again.

 _"How are your lectures going?"_

They end up talking for another hour.

* * *

Laying on her belly with her arms over her head, Elena shifts to try to sleep a little longer. She yawns and rolls onto her back, opening her eyes to look at the ceiling above her. She stretches her limbs, surprised at how refreshed she feels. If she had any nightmares, she doesn't remember them. It's early but when she hears a cupboard close, she knows Angela must be getting her supplies from the pantry. She's a wonderful older woman that they met when she and Enzo donated clothes and toys to a women's shelter.

Elena spent nearly the whole afternoon visiting with her while Enzo played with the children. She'll never get that picture out of her mind, her man sitting on the floor, letting the little ones crawl all over him. Although he doesn't know it, she has a few pictures saved away just in case. The thought puts a smile on her face.

With Elena and Enzo's help, they found Angela and her daughter an apartment that they could afford with the paycheck Elena gives her. She comes in three times a week to not only clean but she always, always makes them a delicious breakfast. Elena feels her belly rumble at the thought. After stretching once more, she gets out of bed and goes into the bathroom to shower and get dressed.

She throws her hair into a messy bun then trots down the stairs to get a cup of coffee. Elena goes straight to the cupboard to get herself a mug. When the older woman looks over her shoulder, Elena smiles. "Good morning, Angela."

"Morning, Miss Elena. I haven't seen Mr. Enzo yet? Is he gone?"

"Yes, he's away for a few days. Thank you," she adds excitedly as Angela slides a full plate in front of her. Elena's eyes widen and her mouth waters when she sees her egg white omelet. It's filled with ham, peppers, onions, tomatoes and bits of cheese. Also on the plate is fresh cantaloupe. Elena digs in, licking her lips and closing her eyes as the flavors explode on her taste buds. She swallows it down and notices how Angela is watching her like a hawk to make sure she eats enough. Elena smiles mentally. _She won't disappoint her, she's terribly hungry after she left out dinner last night._ Luckily, Elena has a speedy metabolism and has never had a hard time keeping her figure. Quite honestly, she'd rather give up her career than stop eating her favorite things.

"Delicious!" she grins at Angela, who looks pleased.

When she gets up to put her dishes in the sink, she notices the time. It's only 8am, the clock is moving so slowly. Elena tries to decide how to distract herself till Damon gets here in the afternoon. She could lounge around the swimming pool and sip a margarita but somehow she knows that drinking will be counterproductive plus she'd have too much time to think about the conversation that's awaiting her when he arrives. She could take Enzo's advice and call Kol but then she'd have her hands full should he and Damon cross paths again. She could stop at the Mikaelsons' or call a friend. None of those things sound right though. She's doing this to come to terms with her past, seeking distractions won't help anything.

Checking the clock one more time, she starts walking to her room. "Angela? I'll be back in a few hours."

* * *

Fearing she'll draw more attention to herself if she shows up wearing a wide hat and sunglasses, Elena instead puts her hair in a tight bun. She finds a pair of light toned glasses that she wore for a role once and slips them on. She looks in the mirror, her makeup is very natural, the final touch being a pinky nude lipstick. Her goal is to appear intellectual and so she chooses a skirt with a jacket and short heels.

Once she has her look together, she drives to the auditorium where Damon is scheduled to give his lecture. Elena sneaks into the room, losing herself among the last of the guests that are piling in.

She was worried that there wouldn't be any tickets left but luckily she manages to snag one. Her seat is about three quarters of the way back from the stage. She feels safe that no one will recognize an A list actress at such a place, she's wearing the skin of a snobby, erudite professor. It's not hard for her to slip into a role like this. _She's married to one after all._

The lighting changes precisely on time, Professor Salvatore arrives on scene and Elena can already feel he power of his presence. A few guests start whispering but the moment Damon walks on stage and takes the microphone, the audience is his.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Thank you all for taking the time out of your day to come to my presentation."

Damon pauses when applause silences him. When it dies down, he starts his lecture.

"Inferno is the first part of Dante Alighieri's 14th-century epic poem Divine Comedy. It is followed by Purgatorio and Paradiso. As you know the Inferno tells the journey of Dante through Hell, guided by the ancient Roman poet Virgil. In the poem, Hell is depicted as nine concentric circles of torment located within the Earth; it is the "realm... of those who have rejected spiritual values by yielding to bestial appetites or violence, or by perverting their human intellect to fraud or malice against their fellowmen." As an allegory, the Divine Comedy represents the journey of the soul toward God, with the Inferno describing the recognition and rejection of sin."

Damon stops to take a drink of water and then continues his presentation.

Elena finds herself sucked into his theme, he knows how to keep his audience attentive, she's certain that this amazing ability accounts for at least half of his success. There's a short pause before eleven o'clock but most guests stay in their places eager for more. He knows how to mesmerize and she can't help but believe that most of them are afraid they'll miss even a small portion of _his_ show if they leave for a bathroom break or a soda or something to snack on.

Elena pulls out a scratchpad, pretends to write notes and ignores those surrounding her in case anyone would want to chat. She still keeps stealing glances at people who came to listen to Damon speak. Right before the break is over she sinks deeper into the chair as she notices two well known figures close to the stage. How could she forget that Elijah wanted to go to one of these? But Kol joining him? That's a shock to her system.

The last thing she wants is to attract their attention. Given the fact that they are both doing the same, keeping a low profile, it won't be much of a problem for her. During the Q and A session she's holds her breath a few times, because there are questions coming from people who are sitting close to her. If he'd happen to notice her by accident... Fortunately for her he never lays eyes on her but she doubts that he would recognize her anyway.

By the end of the event Elena feels irrationally proud and excited for Damon, this is what he worked for, this is what he loves doing. She even considers picking him up, now that he's done here... and then her mind takes her to another lecture, another moment when she felt enchanted by her scholarly professor.

 _Elena claps her hands enthusiastically, so proud of his success. It's his first solo lecture, many representatives from different universities present and she knows more will follow. The good professors are already booking dates for future lectures at other universities all across the USA. He may get the grant that he's talked about endlessly, the Paris one which would allow him to study the Louvre's treasures for an extended period of time. She feels so proud of him and his accomplishments, this is his dreams coming true._

 _She gets up as the rest of the people start leaving the room, some coming to the stage to shake Damon's hand or have a few words with the young talented scholar so she waits till the crowd thins out and until he finishes chatting with just several of his colleagues. She likes watching him in his environment. He's different, like... more himself? This is actually not a reassuring thought. Is he himself more when he's not with her?_

 _He notices her presence and comes over, surprise written all over his face._

 _"Elena, what are you doing here?"_

 _"How can you even ask?" she replies, her eyes sparkling. "It was amazing Damon, I am so proud, it was a phenomenal success!"_

 _Damon gives her a faint smile. "Thank you, it was good... I thought you weren't supposed to be back until tomorrow?"_

 _Elena's beaming smile dims a little. "I wanted to surprise you, of course I wouldn't miss your first solo lecture. If it's inconvenient..."_

 _"No, no, of course not... Tell you what. You must be tired and you need to take care of yourself," his eyes glance to her still flat stomach. "Take a taxi home and get some rest, I'll be there as soon as I'm able to get out of here? There's a short reception but I won't be later than six and then, my love, we can have a quiet evening just the two of us?"_

 _Elena nods and shivers when she feels his fingers tips gently squeeze her arm. He's already turning back to the professors and other scientists that are standing nearby to have a word with him._

No, he wouldn't be pleased if she just showed up. There won't be any introductions between the people in _his_ world and _hers._

So in the same manner she came, she quietly slips out of the room without looking back.

* * *

 _Don't hate Damon. Men deal with grief differently, people deal with grief differently. I know it appears so but the baby wasn't the only source of their troubles, you get a hint of that at the end of the chapter. And Damon's thoughts are correct, 'We do hurt the ones we love the most'._

 _Eva and I want to thank you all so very much, we're awed and grateful for your reviews, follows and favorites. You surprise us and inspire us to keep writing stories._

 _Thank you Eva. You're the best._

 _Chapter title: 'Old Wounds' by Belmont._

 _I did post the first chapter of, "The Children's Blizzard." It's based on a snow storm that hit the great plains, pre statehood South Dakota and Nebraska in 1888._

 _Many dear friends have stories in progress. Mariah April May has two: 'The Devil's Obsession' and 'Marry Me Instead'. Florencia7 has authored many fantastic DE stories. JustiniaKorax: 'The Things She Felt While He Was Gone'. Salvatoreboys4ever: 'Captive of Her Beauty'. TheLittle MissVixen: 'Before The Devil Knows You're Dead'. Short on words: 'A Wonderful Lie'. VitsAsh: 'Stumbling Upon'. Deepwater1978 is back and brilliant as ever with 'Lady Boss'. Mandzipop is writing her own versions of S4 & 5\. __StarlightSo and Amazing Aisha are among so many others who are helping to keep Damon and Elena alive and prospering through their stories._

 _I hope you all have a fantastic day and a wonderful weekend._


	8. Love is a Battlefield

When the last of the applause begins to die down, Damon has a good feeling about today's lecture. The whole set, the auditorium design was well thought out, he marvels. The acoustics are very good and the stadium seating is ideal. There's always a few people who hang around afterwards to have a few words with him. It's part of the job.

Most of the time, it's just kids wanting him to autograph one of his books for them but there are benefactors among them. He may regret that he didn't book more dates for his west coast trip after today's success.

Right after he started speaking today, he happened to notice Elena's young friend Kol sitting in the very first row. Beside him is a man who looks like an older version of him, possibly the altruistic brother he mentioned the day they met. After taking a few glances at him, Damon remembers why he looks so familiar. The man was in a movie that Vanessa was dying to see so he quit resisting and tagged along with her. It wasn't awful, he must admit, it was a drama, not really his cup of tea but she was swooning over the man who's now sitting in front row observing his every nuance and mannerism. Elijah Mikaelson, that's his name. Enzo mentioned something about a donation?

He puts his water bottle down then turns his attention back to the audience. There's really no point in thinking about the guy now but he can see the determination on Kol's face. There's no doubt in Damon's mind that he will approach him as soon as he finishes up.

When he's concluding the Q and A, that's always part of his lectures, he can't help the lazy smile that forms. It's easy to see that Kol has the attention span of a gnat. He's probably only here in the first place at the behest of his brother.

"Any more questions?" he asks, looking around to see if any hands raise up. "No? I've already ran over my allotted time, thank you for your attention and please consider supporting the project either financially or with your voice."

As usual, he lingers, waiting for the few people that come after the lecture to exchange a few words, there are always some, Kol and Elijah being among them.

"Damon," Kol addresses him and Damon fights the urge to roll his eyes. _They_ always do this, showing off their _friendly_ or rather their _people_ nature, hoping to attract more attention. They try to make believe they're just like everyone else but they're not. Most of them are snobs who forget their roots and look down on less fortunate people. That's why Damon only ventures out to California when his book publisher or his Dean demands that he comply.

"Kol," he shakes his hand vigorously and turns his attention to Elijah himself.

Kol does the introductions. He and Elijah engage in short yet rather intelligent conversation, the guy knows what he's talking about, Damon realizes, much to his surprise. Kol _interrupts_ it a few times, but otherwise he seems more decent than at Elena's the other day.

"Thank you for the inspiring lecture, professor and the interesting conversation now. Here," he pulls out a business card, "you can call me when you have time to discuss whatever project you have in mind, I'm willing to listen to anything you consider worth my attention."

"Thank you, Mr. MIkaelson, I'll be in town for several days yet, I'll surely give you a call."

Kol smirks at him, "See? I told you my brother is the right person to talk to."

 _Does the man have any sense of tact or is he completely clueless?_

He pats Damon's shoulder which he finds inappropriate but what else could he expect from a Hollywood player?

He says goodbye to the men and considers going for a lunch before he continues onto Elena's but then to his dismay another familiar figure crosses his path.

"Shane, what on earth would someone in your field be doing here? Are you considering switching your livelihood? Or were you just curious about true art versus the gilt?"

Atticus Shane doesn't know why but he has a feeling there's a story somewhere in this remarkable triangle around Elena Gilbert. He doesn't want to anger Enzo or Elena anymore than he already has but the good professor is another matter altogether. He's not exactly enthusiastic about art history but he is very interested in the A list group that seems to surround Damon Salvatore. It happened again today with the Mikaelson brothers. Elijah is well known for his interest in art history and the sciences but Kol? He is one of Elena Gilbert's inner circle though same as this professor. He's determined to find out how this man fits in with the rest of that group.

"Stranger things have happened, Professor Salvatore, I admire all kinds of art..."

Damon snorts, _did this guy just compare Hollywood pinheads to history's greatest artists?_

"I have no doubt that's true. However, if you're thinking that if you dig around long enough, you'll come up with a story for your tabloid, you can throw in the towel now. It's not going to happen. There's no story there. It's all about the art." Damon quickens his pace, hoping to leave the annoying scribbler behind.

Shane doesn't try to keep up with him, not this time. "We'll see about that, professor!"

When Damon pauses slightly, he adds, "See you around." If he's not mistaken, there was one other guest he noticed by sheer happenstance this morning. That person was none other than Elena Gilbert herself.

* * *

After finishing up at the college, Damon drives back to his hotel to shower and change into some casual clothes. He forgoes shaving because she always loved running her palms against his cheek. _What are you thinking Damon?_

He shakes it off, slips into a pair of jeans, a V-neck tee shirt and a pair of Birkenstocks. Vanessa raised an eyebrow when he brought them home from the store. She said they really weren't his thing. Although he felt a little disgruntled, he let it slide off of his shoulders. After spraying on some Armani cologne, he grabs the keys to his rental car and leaves his room to face his past.

Two hours later Damon pulls into her driveway. He takes a deep breath then steps out of the car and walks to her front door. He raises his finger to push the doorbell but pauses a minute when he feels a slight jab in his belly. Yet he knows he can't put it off any longer so he reluctantly pushes the button, taking a step back when a strange woman opens the door. Damon feels a little uncomfortable under her scrutinizing gaze but then she steps aside to let him in. It's been some time since Damon felt so small. He greets the woman moving his head.

"Hello, I'm here to..."

"I know who you are, Professor Salvatore, Miss Elena told me that she was expecting you. I'm Angela, I'm their housekeeper."

Damon has no idea how to respond to this polite but not exactly friendly welcome and walks around her to step inside the house. He's barely through the door when he sees her. Elena is trotting down the staircase to greet him. She looks freshly showered, her hair is wet and she's dressed in a light comfortable housecoat, no make up and she's just _lovely._

"I'm leaving now Miss, if you don't need anything else...?"

"No that's it for today. Thank you Angela, you met Professor Salvatore, Damon, this is Angela, our guardian angel." The women share a smile and Damon can't help but think what brought them together.

Angela runs her eyes over him again before turning her head to the side to meet Elena's. "See you on Friday," she adds and then leaves, closing the door behind her.

Elena leads him to the living room and tells him to make himself comfortable. It's an airy large room with glass door connecting it with the patio. Damon never really paid much attention to it the other day but today, he's mesmerized. The size of the room is nearly as big as his house. One side is all windows and the sliding door that leads to her swimming pool and to the Pacific ocean itself. He feels a little twist in his stomach when a brief thought of walking on the beach with her pops into his head. He quickly pushes it away.

There's a big fireplace, a large TV, huge sectional couches and paintings on the walls. He has to get a closer look at one of them. "This is a remarkable reproduction of one of Botticelli's Madonna's."

"It is. I like it a lot and since the original is priceless I had to settle for a copy. But it is quite good don't you think?"

"Yes. It's very nice.

"Kol painted it." She pauses when she sees the skeptical look on Damon's face. "Well... it was paint by number but he's very good at it." Elena tries hard not to laugh when she sees the scowl on his face.

Shuddering that he actually gave it a second look, Damon steps away from it. "Since when do you have a fascination for the arts?"

"Since I married a professor of art history of course," she adds, without turning to look at him. She pours them each a drink.

"It's too hot outside, we can go to the pool later if you'd like." Then she hands Damon his. He nods and accepts the glass of bourbon, a little surprised to see that Elena's just having a mineral water with a slice of lemon.

She settles on the couch across from him and takes a breath. "I think we're stuck here, Damon. I thought we needed to talk about..."

"Why do you think I never loved you?" he finally gets to ask the one question he's been keeping inside since their last... what did Enzo called it, session? He contemplated mentioning it to Ric but somehow it felt too private to discuss it with anyone else.

Elena is caught of guard by the straightforwardness of it but then again, Damon has never been a coward. Usually if something was bothering him, he'd try to solve it right away so he could move onto the next thing. _Except her._

It's probably her own fault she let things just... flow. She takes a sip from her glass and then meets his stare. "Because I don't think you did. That's how it feels to me."

"How can you say that? I will admit that I probably didn't handle it well, hell, I know I didn't, I mean... the baby. I was an asshole." _Even now it's fucking difficult to just think about it._ "But you just took off and never looked back, you broke my heart. And yes, Elena, I did love you very much."

Elena holds her breath at the change. He talks. He fights her. He's clearly given it some thought. And he hasn't taken the easy way out that she offered him. He's here. Right now. With her. _Sadly, it doesn't change anything._

And just like that the lightbulb illuminates in her mind. The fatigue. The years they wasted to get to this point. She can see clearly that she should have let go the first time she realized that they will never be on the same page. She should have seen it from the beginning. But she didn't want to see it then. _She was in love._

"Damon... I know you were crazy about me. You tried to do the right thing when you married me after I'd found out about the pregnancy. I know you thought you couldn't resist me, you told me so and I also know how hard you tried to make it work..."

Damon's looking at her dumbfounded. _Is she saying she saw all of this and still left?_

"... but did I, really? Or was I just solving your problem for you? Was it just your pride that was hurt? I'm not talking about... the baby now, although it was then that I knew I was fighting a losing battle..." She pauses to take a breath.

"What I'm trying to say is.. that you _hated it_ , you hated every minute of it because I was a constant reminder that even the great Professor Salvatore is a mere mortal just like the rest of us when it comes to women and attraction. You hated that you were helpless, caught up in a current I believe you said once... You needed me despite the fact you're still trying to rationalize this _mess_ in your mind, the mess I caused. You were ashamed of it and you were ashamed of _me_ ," she has to stop when she feels her emotions beginning to overwhelm her.

She swallows past the lump in her throat adding, "I was just an actress and in your mind, we're a sorry lot, subhuman, probably a notch above Neanderthal. Just because I'm not an intellectual doesn't mean I'm a fool either."

Elena tries to catch her breath and takes a sip from her glass, the water falling into her parched throat. She can feel it makes its path in her stomach, roiling on the inside but somehow she chokes back the nausea.

Damon feels sick at her words. Shock is slowly creeping into his system, he wants to say something, anything but his vocal cords are paralyzed, so he just looks at her, waiting and wishing for her to take those biting words back.

"You never considered me an equal, Damon. You didn't like who I was so you chose to ignore it and pretend I was someone else. I tried, I swear I did. But it wasn't enough. _I_ wasn't enough. You didn't actually want me to change but you want the power you believed I had over you to disappear. When I realized this, I gave you what you needed. That time it was... everything was so emotional, I blamed myself for what happened to _her_ , you blamed me too. I knew you married me just because of the pregnancy and... then... the reason was gone. Maybe it wasn't supposed to be. Just like us. Our marriage."

Isn't this the same thing he's always thought, only it's her saying it? It didn't feel so wrong back then, when it was born in his own mind. But now, coming from her mouth... _Why does it hurt so much?_

"Elena, you can't actually believe all this nonsense."

"It's nonsense to you," Elena adds bitterly, standing up to pour herself a drink now.

"No Elena, please don't try to twist my words, I just can't understand how could you come up with this fable? Your recollection is not what... I remem..." his voice trails off as he drops his eyes to the drink in his hand. The ripples in the amber colored liquid momentarily hypnotize him as he struggles inside to get back some semblance of control.

"Damon?"

"We... were happy once?" he insists, meeting her eyes when he looks up.

Elena sadly shakes her head. "I thought so too. I wanted to believe we were, that we could be. But... I don't anymore. I didn't break your heart Damon, you broke mine."

* * *

He feels numb. But the anger's coming. It's bubbling just below the surface and he can do nothing to prevent the explosion. How dare she just throw all of this at him, making him the bad guy here?

He opens his mouth to ask just that but at the exact moment Elena's phone rings and he's simply blown away by the wave of nostalgia when he recognizes her ring tone.

 _"You're kidding, Damon?" she shrieks excitedly. "You really like this old song?"_

 _Damon's not happy to share this detail about himself, but she caught him off guard when she decided to put him through a music history lesson. Just by happenstance, she played Glenn Miller's "In the Mood". He remembers his mother played it often, she had plenty of those old recordings from his grandmother. Their 'swing sessions' became one of the few fond memories of his childhood. As luck would have it she heard him humming the melody in the shower and he unwillingly admitted he has a soft spot for the song. However he soon regrets it._

 _"Really Elena? You don't have to do this do you?"_

 _"On the contrary," she smirks. "I finally found my new ring tone," she doesn't hesitate to add it to his name._

 _"Oh, come on, Elena..., You're never going to let me live this down are you?"_

 _"Nope. When you call me, I'll always know it's you. And you won't hear it anyway because it will be you calling me, so shush..."_

Elena ignores her call but when she sees him looking at her phone perplexed, she blushes. _She fucking blushes._

"I... guess I just got used to it and kept it on the phone..."

He can't do this. He can't do this now. Without a word he finishes his bourbon and moves to the door.

"Where are you going? Damon?"

"You've had plenty of time to think about everything you needed to say and now you've said it. At the very least, you can give me some time to think about all this, to dig my way out of the blast crater. I'll call you later.. you have my word."

"Damon, I..."

He doesn't wait, instead he hurries through the door, hoping she won't follow because he needs space. And bourbon. A lot of it. He slips into his car and drives off, nearly flooring the gas pedal.

Elena doesn't try to stop him. Hidden behind the curtain, she watches him drive away. She's aware that she can't blame him, not now. How ironic is it that after she finally told him how she felt when they were together, he runs away now just like she did then. She has no expectations and even more strangely, the good feeling that she expected is surprisingly absent.

 _But she did what she had to do. That must count for something right? Now she can finally move on or can she?_

She drops to the floor and sits next to the window, her palm pressing on the carpet.

After years keeping everything bottled up, she cries.

* * *

 _"Are we going to have a honeymoon?" Elena's eyes shine with curiosity. They didn't get to have a big wedding, instead choosing to have a small ceremony at Damon's place in NOLA with only the Judge, Ric and Enzo present. They wanted to keep it small and intimate but the main reason was to keep it from becoming a spectacle. The last thing they needed was a bunch of nosy journalists, annoying paparazzi and front page headlines in large print._

 _Damon would gladly forego the honeymoon too or at least postpone it for the time being. He's working hard, day and night, on the first draft of his book, but he couldn't do that to her. Elena's going to be unable to travel soon, she deserves to have some fun. Seeing her enthusiasm he hesitates, wondering if he shouldn't have planned something more interesting than a small little out of the way town in bumfuck-nowheresville, Virginia._

 _"I actually thought we could spend a few weeks at my uncle's place. He has a boarding house in Mystic Falls, Virginia.. But... it might be a bit boring. We could go somewhere else if you'd like?"_

 _"Really?" To Damon's surprise Elena seems excited about the prospect. "That's amazing, I actually get to meet one of your relatives, an uncle? Are you sure he won't mind?"_

 _"Of course he wouldn't. I didn't actually tell him it was our honeymoon but he will know soon enough. He's my father's brother, I used to go there for my vacation when I was a kid. After dad re-married, I had to live with my mom but I still kept in touch with uncle Zach."_

 _"That's why you didn't want your family at the wedding?"_

 _Damon knows where this is going. "Elena, I told you we're not close. I have some fond memories, like swing dancing but they're few. We weren't the touchy feely type family. It was more like my mom was a drill sergeant. She'd stiffen when I would hug her and turn her cheek if I tried to give her a kiss. It's just the way it was in our house._ _She and especially my sister, Katherine, would drive you crazy, they do me."_

 _"Damon?"_

 _"If you think I'm boring, you haven't seen anything yet. They're much worse! I know you're going to have a hard time believing this but I'm actually the fun one in the family. Katherine teaches math and physics at Texas A &M and mom is the Dean. If you want the honest truth, sometimes I'm not sure that I can blame my dad for running?" _

_Damon pauses for a moment. She watches melancholy wash over his features but it disappears as quickly as it came. Then the corners of his lips lift, "Besides, we were eloping, no guests, no journalists, no publicity, remember?"_

 _Elena nods but Damon's not sure what's going on in her head. In his mind, it's the best, really the only way they could have handled it. After Elena found out she was pregnant, he wasn't exactly happy, but he couldn't run from his responsibilities either._

 _However, neither of them wanted any publicity, Enzo advised to Elena to keep it secret for now so they won't be bothered by journalists and other gossip hounds_ _. Damon certainly didn't want to have a mob of paparazzi on his tail, their tail. He neither wanted or needed this kind of exposure_ _. So they kept a low profile. It worked. It's still working._

 _Elena and Zach become fast friends. Damon's glad. In a way he admires Elena's ability to talk with everyone about what they like, she's a good listener. Zach's a little caught of guard when he introduces Elena as his secret wife. Zach quickly makes a connection to her from seeing her current movie recently in the theater. Damon must admit it's quite fun, but that's who Zach is, he could hardly expect the same reaction from his respectable colleagues._

 _"Do you think we'll ever be able to go where we want, when we want, together, as two married people without having to hide?" Elena's lazily spread on the passenger seat, luckily his Range Rover offers that amenity. She looks happy and well rested, he congratulates himself mentally that the Mystic Falls honeymoon wasn't such a bad idea after all._

 _"I don't know? Maybe when you retire?" He jokes only partly._

 _Elena laughs, giving him a shake of her head; "Are you saying that you want me to give up my career?"_

 _"No, of course not," he responds, trying to put on a happy face for her. The thought of them being in the 'same' place twenty years from now..._ _the demands of her career, long separations while she films on location..._ _inside he can admit to himself that it isn't the most appealing prospect._

* * *

 _Damon feels a bit shell shocked. A hint of what's coming in 9: Damon buys a plane ticket..._

 _Thank you all so much. We are blown away by your response to this story. You are all simply the best of the DE universe. Eva and I will keep trying to bring fresh and new versions of Damon and Elena to you._

 _Eva, I love you dearly. Thank you for everything you do to help bring our DE's to life._

 _Chapter title: 'Love is a Battlefield' by Pat Benatar, one of my favorite 80's songs._

 _In case you missed it, I did post two "I Can't Escape Myself" story verse one- shots for Valentine's day. One is called "Almost Perfect" the other "Perfect". Eva and I would love to hear your thoughts._

 _'The Children's Blizzard' is in progress. It's the story of devastating blizzard that hit the Great Plains, my neck of the woods in 1888._

 _Be safe and have a fantastic day and a wonderful weekend. Thank you all again. Until next time._


	9. Valley of the Dolls

The morning is brutal. Damon fell asleep on the couch with a bottle of bourbon in hand after he returned from the hotel bar. All that mattered to him was drinking enough to obliterate all the awful things she said to him. _But was there a grain of truth in her words?_

In his zeal to reach oblivion, to untangle the labyrinthine corridors that flickered like neon in his mind, he drank till he passed out. He slowly starts to sit up, groaning aloud as he does. His eyes feel like shards of glass are poking the backs of them, his mouth is drier than the Sahara and his limbs feel heavy and uncoordinated. When it feels like the room is starting to spin, he lays back down.

Damon wraps himself in the duvet, waves of nausea only add to his misery. His brain feels like it's swelling beyond the capacity of his skull and now his dehydration is too obvious to ignore, his dry mouth thick with saliva. His stomach lurches and gurgles, he raises his heavy eyelids half way only to snap them shut again.

The aching in his skull ebbs and flows like a cold tide, yet the pain is relentless. He's been hungover before but this is the mother of all hangovers. With the movement of one leg, the tell-tale clink of a bourbon bottle sears his brain like a branding iron. He moans and slowly opens his eyes, this time through split fingers to check for any damage.

As soon as his vision clears, he tries to remember what his dream was about? _Their honeymoon at Zach's?_

He can't quite recall the exact details but he has a nagging feeling there was something important about this particular dream. When his eyes finally land on the wall clock, he nearly has a heart attack. In his drunkenness, he forgot all about setting an alarm or asking for a wake up call from the front desk.

He flies off of the couch, and runs into the bathroom. He doesn't even have time for a shower so he brushes his teeth, combs his hair and gets dressed before dashing out of his room. Since it'll be quicker on foot albeit more painful, he darts into the stairwell taking two at time till he reaches the lobby.

From there he runs outside to flag a taxi, he's in no shape to drive when he feels this wrecked. Not even ten minutes later, he's sitting in the taxi going over his notes for today's presentation.

Almost too soon, the taxi pulls up alongside the curb. He pays the driver a nice tip, runs up the stairs and into the campus Fine Arts building. His throat is parched and dry from all the bourbon so he pops some coins in a vending machine, pushing the button to get himself an ice cold bottle of water. He almost chugs the entire thing in one swallow. He sighs with relief, hopefully he'll be able to speak and not croak at the audience. Before heading to the auditorium, he buys himself one more and then hurries off to give his speech.

Today's lecture isn't awful, the assembled crowd is respectful but Damon still feels edgy and hungover. He glances up at the clock at least about every ten minutes, bemoaning the fact that the hands are barely moving. Raking his hand through his hair, he takes another drink while silently praying for a short break so he can at least find a couple of aspirin or a pain reliever of some sort.

Although he manages to give a suitable presentation, his mind certainly wasn't in the game today. By the time he wraps things up, Damon realizes that he can either face Elena or go back to his hotel room to deal with all of his unsettled thoughts.

Feelings like deep ocean currents surface inexplicably, rising up with sudden brutal ferocity. Currents once hidden break through the barrier, swirling inside his head but also in his belly and truth be told, his chest too. He's at a loss to understand why.

An incoming call reminds him he forgot something else as well. Although he really doesn't want to talk to her right now, he can't put it off either.

"Ness!" he tries to show at least some enthusiasm.

 _"Damon... Where have you been? I tried to call you several times last night, I was worried..."_

"I'm sorry, Vanessa. Um... I got a little 'indisposed', you know, hanging around with some colleagues after the lecture. They took me downtown to this swank bar, the bourbon was some of the best I've ever tasted," he explains, lying seamlessly.

 _"Are you alright Damon?"_ her tone immediately changes and her voice is nice but discussing _this_ with _her_ is not an option.

"Of course, I'm alright. I'm sorry that I worried you," he effectively changes the topic. "Listen, Vanessa, I thought I could fly home for a few days. After tomorrow's session, I don't have another till next Monday afternoon. I'll see if I can arrange something."

Damon breathes a sigh of relief when she doesn't bring his absence up again. Over the next several minutes, she tells him about the classes and when they say goodbye, he knows that she's already forgiven his omission.

 _Strangely though, he doesn't feel even a little bit better._

* * *

"Enzo! Chill! I'm already on my way," Elena reassures him while getting inside the car. She tells the driver where to go and then settles back against the seat. After everything that went down with Damon last evening, she simply couldn't fall asleep. When he left and after she stopped crying, she moved to the bedroom. Even though she took a sleeping pill she was still laying wide awake, staring at the ceiling at 5 am.

Apparently the pill had a delayed reaction because when it came time for her to get up, she ignored the alarm clock when it started blaring on her bedside stand. Rather than get up, she picked it up, uttered a few colorful metaphors and launched it across the room before burying her face under the pillow. In the end, it was Enzo's ringtone that made her eyes snap open. Flustered, she flew out of bed and quickly jumped into the shower. After throwing her hair up in a messy bun and slipping on an airy sundress and heels, she called for a taxi.

Because she knows Enzo as well as she does, she started to count down from ten and got to two when her phone alerted her to another of his calls. She can't help but laugh when she sees how many times he's tried already this morning. She needs to be at the studio early this afternoon to do more interviews and a few publicity shots. God bless him though, she doesn't know where she'd be without his presence in her life. Now he's ready to serve her ass to her on a silver platter for not waking up in time.

" _You knew I would be calling."_

"Of course but you love me anyway right?" Elena laughs as she relaxes, shifting a little in her seat for comfort as the taxi moves through traffic seamlessly.

 _"I knew I should have cut this off and come back to do the interviews with you."_

"Uh no! I'm perfectly able to do this, Enzo, and very well know it. As much as I love you, I am a grown woman and more than capable of taking care of myself thank you very much."

 _"You know I didn't mean anything derogatory. I know you are a very capable woman, one of the strongest I know."_

"That's better... And thank you for waking me up," she adds and laughs shortly when Enzo mutters something under his breath. "I hope you're having a good time?"

 _"I am, very much so, but you haven't told me how you are. Was professor 'stick in the ass' good to you?"_

"Enzo... I... don't want to talk about it. I did tell him everything I felt that I needed to say to him. He listened but then left afterwards, said he'd call me. I will say that he looked a little shell shocked. Maybe he will, maybe he won't. Honestly, I would like to hear from him but either way, I'll be alright."

 _"Good. When it proves to be true, I'll lead the applause but for now... well, I'm glad to hear you say it," he says gently._

Elena smiles, a bit of melancholy creeping in but she knows that he understands her, he always has.

 _"Are you sure that you don't want me to come home right away? I'll hop on the next plane and be there by the end of your day."_

"I'm sure. Stay overnight and come back sometime tomorrow, alright?"

 _"Okay then. Call me when you're through with the interviews. And if a certain someone bothers you... kick his ass."_

Elena ends the call and looks out of the window. She knows she owes it to Damon to listen if he wants to respond to what she told him, he let her have her say. Still she wishes he'd have the decency to let her know one way or another what his decision is. The time to move on has come.

... _If only it was as easy to believe it, to live it as it is saying it._

* * *

Damon happens to run into a couple of colleagues of his when he walks into his hotel. They chat a bit and then went for a late lunch in the hotel restaurant. Seems the men are in town to attend one of the lectures he's scheduled to give tomorrow. After saying goodbye to them, he ends up in his room alone with the same dilemma. Should he call Elena and end this today or should he wait until he's certain that he's ready to face her again? _Will he ever be ready?_

Ever since yesterday, he's been a yellow-bellied coward. He's done anything and everything he could think of to avoid thinking about what she said. For the first time in a very long time, he finds himself unable to deal with what it means for him, for _them._

No matter how hard he tries to reject the idea, there is still a " _them_ ". He stops, his mouth literally parting at the thought. Did he just admit to himself that Elena is still an important part of his life? And the million dollar question... where does Vanessa fit into this equation?

He shakes his head and reaches for a new bottle of bourbon.

 _What was it about that dream? And after all this time, why now? What was it about their honeymoon at uncle Zach's that he can't quite get a handle on? And why is it haunting him now?_

There was nothing special about it. They could have gone to Thailand, Hawaii, Bali or any other exotic location. But that would have meant popular beaches, luxury resorts, airports, publicity, paparazzi and annoying reporters. Instead of indulging in all of that, they went hiking, horseback riding, slept in almost everyday. Often they'd stay awake till after midnight playing cards and bullshitting with his uncle, drinking anything they could get their hands on, except for Elena that is. Zach even took it upon himself to teach her how to cook a few dishes, something he never could have done. Patience isn't one of his best virtues.

 _Elena's probably not a bad cook. The few occasions he's tasted her culinary skills, he certainly couldn't complain._

He needs to stop this train of thought, it's not getting him anywhere. He picks up his phone and dials Ric's number. The longer he has to wait for him to pick up the more frustrated he gets. Finally Ric answers as if he didn't have a care in the world.

 _"Hey Damon? How is it going?"_ he draws out and Damon grimaces.

"Hey Ric, what are you drinking?"

 _"Nothing special, really. A friend of mine, it's his birthday today so we're having a small party at my house. Why?"_

Damon rolls his eyes, "It's not important... But listen buddy, I won't keep you. I'm probably going to fly home to New Orleans this weekend. I'll give you a call when I get to town." He ends the call before Ric can respond.

In the rotten mood he's in, it really wouldn't be helpful for either of them to get into anything over the phone.

 _No Damon, this time you don't get to run away from it..._

* * *

The afternoon is endless, Elena constantly has to fight the urge to either bang her head against the coffee table or just lay down and fall asleep. Her restless night is starting to wear on her and it's struggle to maintain a happy demeanor.

"Do you expect another Golden Globe or even an Oscar nomination?"

 _How original._ "No, I don't think it's that kind of movie, it's less drama and more fun."

"Do you still keep in touch with your co-star, Kol Mikaelson? You two certainly nailed it on screen with _'Tomorrow'_. You know how rumors spread like wildfire about all the crazy stuff that goes on behind the scenes?"

 _Oh my god, everyone knows we're friends. Why are they fishing for more?_

"As you are well aware, Kol and I have been friends for some time. I'm also sure you know that I recommended him for this role. I keep in touch with the entire Mikaelson family, they're dear friends and their matriarch, Esther Mikaelson used to be my manager."

"Ah, Mr. St John..."

 _Drip, drip, drip... and now she wants to dig into our private lives._

Elena switches back on autopilot to get over these last few interviews. The woman, she called herself Chandra, finally finishes and then vacates the seat opposite her. After thanking Elena, she hurries out of the room. Elena looks up at Roger, the studio guy who's there with her in Enzo's absence and he gives her a crooked smile.

"That's all for today Elena. Before you leave I want to remind you that there are two TV appearances scheduled for Friday. Enzo should be back in time to go with you, right?"

"Yes, he will. Thanks, Roger, it was smooth sailing," she comes closer and gives him a short, genuine hug.

Roger nods appreciatively, "No, I want to thank you, it's always a pleasure." He collects his notebook and waves goodbye.

Elena goes to the bathroom to fix her make up. She contemplates calling Enzo now but then he'd just ask her to call him again when she gets home so she may as well just wait to make it. After buying a bottle of water from a vending machine, She picks up her things and leaves the building.

She's just looking around to get a taxi when a deep voice comes from behind her: "Miss Elena, I am a little wounded that you didn't ask call me to keep you company today? I mean Enzo _finally_ leaves your side for more than a few minutes and you go into radio silence. Explain."

"Kol!" Despite her shock at seeing him, she has to laugh. "Why do you always insist on making my heart jump out of my chest?" she smacks him with her purse.

"Because, my dear, a little birdie sang me a song threatening to ... you don't even want to know what, if I don't pick you up and make sure that you are alright."

"I'm going to kill him. I swear sometimes he treats me like a four year old."

"Don't exaggerate. Come on, when was the last time you had a decent dinner?"

"Yesterday?" Elena retorts, although it's not exactly true. Angela did leave her something in the fridge but after Damon left she wasn't in the mood to eat it.

Kol rolls his eyes and urges her into his car.

Elena spends a lovely evening with people who's been like her family for years. After saying goodnight to everyone, Kol takes her home, not leaving till she's safely inside her house. When she drops onto the couch, she glances at her Grandfather clock. It's after 10 pm and then it dawns on her.

 _Damon didn't call._

* * *

Despite all the bourbon he had last night, again, he feels surprisingly refreshed when he receives his wake up call at 7:30. He packs a small suitcase as he plans to catch the 15:30 flight which means he'll have to hurry to LAX as soon as he concludes the lecture. He'll have to shorten the allotted Q&A time if he's going to make it to the airport in time.

Thoughts of _her_ gnaw at him... he probably should have called Elena already but he'll just have to message her later to let her know that he _is_ planning to finish their conversation. _Now_ for the sake of his sanity, he needs to get the hell out of here.

The lecture goes well, this time most of the guests are academics and the debate by the end of the event is stimulating. They end a half hour later than he anticipated and even then, he reluctantly has to call it a day. He exchanges numbers and sets a meeting with some of them for next week, grabs his suitcase and runs to catch a taxi.

The way to the airport is miraculously quick. Given LA traffic, he's pleasantly surprised when he arrives in time to have a donut and coffee. While sipping from his cup he watches the crowd, people arriving or hurrying to catch their flights when suddenly he almost spills the hot beverage in his lap. _Enzo?_

Graceful as always, Enzo strolls like he's God's gift to women across the airport concourse, an elegant brunette at his side, her arm linked with his. He looks like he's returning from a romantic weekend. _Enzo?_

As if his sunglasses could fool anyone. Damon quickly leaves the cash and a tip on the table and sets off after them. A cold hand's squeezing his heart as he watches them share a kiss and part, Enzo letting go of her hand reluctantly. When he heads outside where the awaiting taxis are gathered, Damon, feeling enraged, speeds up, hoping to catch him before he disappears.

Enzo stops to look for a free taxi when Damon steps in front of him with a stormy expression on his face.

"Enzo."

Enzo turns around, looking at him surprised but rather calmly.

"Why on the Earth are you at the airport? Don't you still have lectures to give through for another week and a half?"

"I could ask you the same thing, although I have my suspicions. You said you needed to leave for two days, that it couldn't be helped? What was so important about this trip, Enzo?.. Is that what you're up to, _cheating_ on Elena?"

"Now how is that any of your business, Damon? I'd say you have your own little girlfriend in NOLA waiting for you. And furthermore, at the risk of being redundant, how does any of this concern you?"

"Elena is still my wife."

"Oh really? I think you lost the right to call her that when you slipped a ring on another woman's finger."

His biting retorts cut at Damon's insides as if they were shards of glass. But rather than give Enzo the satisfaction of seeing him falter, he replies, "That may be, but it doesn't mean I want to see her get hurt and most especially not by the likes of you! She doesn't deserve it! And you don't deserve her."

"That makes two of us," to Damon's shock, Enzo's giving him a smug look. _He fucking laughs at him!_

"How dare you!?"

"Ok, Damon. Calm down, you're going to burst a vessel. I don't have time for this because Elena is waiting for me. And you're probably on your merry way to see your little fiancé, so I'm sure you're in a hurry to get out of here. Are you coming back or did you finally get what you needed and we won't ever have to see that smug, cocky little face of yours again?"

Damon doesn't even know how to respond to this insolence. "Don't you worry your pretty little head about that, Enzo. I'll be back and I intend to make sure you explain this to Elena or I will."

Enzo waves him off. "Alright Professor, I'll see you soon then." He turns his back to Damon and gets in the closest taxi without looking back.

Damon stands there for a few minutes dumbfounded. _Does that bastard really think he'd let him do this to her?_

Elena depends on him, trusts him and he... _He should stay here._

He should stay here and deal with the mess they all created. He's done pretending. She's not his to worry about anymore. _But he still needs to think, there's so many chaotic thoughts spinning in his head._

Are they the reason he's on the way back to NOLA? To get wasted with Ric, reunite with Vanessa and try to convince himself that he's doing the right thing? _What are you doing, Damon?_

Shaking his head, he turns on his heels, walks back inside the airport and takes his place in line at the United Gate.

When he finally gets to the ticket counter, he smiles at the woman. "Hello, would it be too much trouble to exchange this ticket? Instead of going to NOLA, I need to go to Richmond, Virginia, I have a pressing matter that needs my attention."

* * *

 _Feelings are sprouting up and making their presence known again..._

 _Thank you all so much. We are blown away by your response to this story. You are all simply the best of the DE universe. Eva and I will keep trying to bring fresh and new versions of Damon and Elena to you._

 _Eva, I love you dearly. Thank you for everything you do for me._

 _We're arm's deep writing "Welcome to the Jungle" and "Ripples of Fear"... ;) I'm excited to share both of them. We're also plotting a story with Damon and Elena as astronauts. "Don't Fall In Love With a Dreamer."_

 _Chapter title: 'Valley of the Dolls' by Marina and the Diamonds._

 _'The Children's Blizzard' is also in progress._

 _Be safe and have a fantastic day. Thank you all again. Until next time._


	10. Jagged Little Pill

_**HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVA.**_

 _ **Apologies. I'm sitting in the public library to update this. We had an internet outage at our house and it's not expected to be repaired till at least Monday.**_

* * *

Damon takes the drink that the flight attendant offers then leans back in his seat to stare out the window. Acres and acres of land resemble a giant jigsaw puzzle from 30,000 feet, it always feels surreal to him to be higher than cloud level.

He takes a sip and then clutches it in his hands on his lap, letting his mind drift. What in the hell is he doing anyway? After running into Enzo, he felt such an overpowering urge to see his Uncle Zach, one that he was simply powerless to deny.

He doesn't even begin to know what path this quest will lead him on or where it will end, the only thing he understands right now is that it's something he's compelled to do. His reverie is broken when he sees the seat belt light begin to flash out of the corner of his eye. He quickly swallows back what's left in the drink and then buckles up, holding on till he feels the familiar, yet still stomach lurching jolt of the wheels touching down on the runway.

He has a forty five minute layover in Atlanta before his next flight departs for Richmond. Once he's inside the terminal, he looks for his departing gate and after finding it, he goes in search for something to eat. When he sees a McDonalds, he gets in line to order himself a Big Mac meal and a soda. As soon as he has his food, he goes back to his flight's seating area to eat while waiting for the announcement to board his connecting flight.

After he finishes his lunch, he pulls out his phone to let his uncle know that he's coming and to see if Zach can pick him up or if he needs to rent a car. Swallowing thickly, he presses the his icon, a picture of the two of them, smiling happily for Elena.

 _"Hello?"_

"Uncle Zach, hi, it's Damon."

 _"Damon? It's been... a long time. How are you?"_

"I find myself in need of a little down time so I thought I'd come for a visit... unless of course that's a problem?"

 _"You know me better than that, Damon. You're always welcome in my home."_

"I don't want to impose."

 _"Stop that... What time is your plane due to land so I can be there to pick you up?"_

"I'm in Atlanta, my flight should be boarding any minute now. It's scheduled to arrive in Richmond around eleven, you know, time change and all."

 _"Alright, I'll be there. We'll talk then. Goodbye, Damon."_

Damon clicks off his phone and takes a breath. Although he knows he should call Vanessa, he's in no mood to talk to her. Still he won't be able to delay it forever. One way or another, he'll eventually have to tell her what's troubling him but how can he tell her when he doesn't even know himself?

Aside from his work, the reason he flew to Los Angeles in the first place was to end his marriage. He was under the impression that they would say a few words to each other and then she'd sign the papers. Actually it was foolish to think anything involving them together could ever be simple.

And now... he doesn't know up from down, right from left and his mind won't shut off, it feels naked, like a wintery wind blustering in icy chaos. He doesn't know what he's doing or why, he just knows there's something gnawing at his insides that won't let up and he needs some answers. There are days when it would be a blessing not to feel at all.

His thoughts drift back to his uncle. He hasn't actually seen him since their honeymoon. Other than the yearly Christmas and birthday card, he hasn't had any contact with him. It's just that with everything going south in his life, he didn't feel like having to explain everything, about Elena or their daughter... he still feels a lump in his chest when he thinks about her.

He wouldn't blame Zach at all if he were to slam the door in his face and give him the cold shoulder. _But Zach isn't that kind of a man..._

He shoves his phone back in his pocket when they're told to line up to board the plane. Not quite two hours later, he's waiting in a lounge near the luggage carousel assigned to his flight. He only has a carry on bag but he figured it would be an easy place for Zach to find him. After setting his drink down, he looks up just in time to see his uncle looking around. He drops a few coins on the bar top and then approaches Zach. The older man gives Damon a searching look followed quickly by a warm hug.

It's a little astounding to Damon that at thirty four years old, he feels like a little boy who would come here to escape the melodrama going on at home. He loved to absorb the sense of freedom that being with Zach allowed. Being in his uncle's arms, it's not a bad feeling at all, actually it feels good, really good. When they part, Zach smiles and the two of them start moving towards the parking garage.

"Good to see you, Damon."

"I'm really sorry that I didn't give you more warning, it was kind of an impulsive decision, I hope it's not a bad time."

Zach starts the car and carefully drives out of town. "It's not. You know me, Damon, I never have more guests than I can manage and there will always be a room available for you. But you're right, it's been a long time, a very long time."

"I..., I know uncle Zach, I've been busy. Life got sort of crazy. We..., Elena and I are no longer together and..."

"Yes Damon, I know all about it. There is no baby and Elena's back in Hollywood making her movies."

Damon says nothing but nods. _This is not going to be easy._

* * *

Damon's eyes widen when Zach makes the turn that leads to the boarding house. Even in the darkness, he can see the big imposing structure looming in the distance. He's surprised when he feels his heart start to stammer. So many memories, really good ones reside in the walls of the old building. It gets closer and closer till Zach turns into the circular driveway and stops the car in front of the main entrance. He shares a look with his uncle when he lifts Damon's bag out of the trunk. After handing it to him, they walk into the house.

Damon gives him a nod and jogs up the stairs to his room. The first thing he does is plop down on the bed. As his eyes drift around the room, his eyes nearly pop out of his head when he sees a picture of himself and Elena laughing while he tries to help her mount a horse. Zach must have taken it without his knowledge. Taking a breath, he stands up and walks over to the dresser to have a closer look.

His breath catches in his throat when he wispily runs his fingertips over her face. So many memories, so many good memories flood his mind. Soon it becomes too much, his heart starts to slam against is ribs evoking an overwhelming urge to run.

He sets it down and nearly leaps into the bathroom to shower and change. After putting his things away, he goes downstairs to join Zach in the kitchen. It's late but neither is really tired. They share a simple dinner, scrambled eggs and toast... like old times. Zach excuses himself, returning in a few minutes with a bottle of red wine from the cellar.

He pours them each a glass and after Damon takes a sip, he finally finds the courage to ask. "Aren't you even going to ask me about her?"

"I don't need to ask, Damon. I know all about Elena. She drops me a nice letter from time to time. I know that you're not interested in movies and show business but are you aware that she won a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination? She was simply amazing, brilliant in that role. The movie, it was something, I'm still stunned by her performance. It felt pretty good to see my niece receive so many accolades. She earned them but as far as being my niece.. not for much longer?" he eyes Damon contemplatively.

Damon would gladly say something, anything but he seems to have lost his voice.

"They were here last year," Zachary adds, refilling their wine glasses.

"What? Like, here with you?" he looks at him in shock.

Zach can't help but laugh. "Yes, they came to visit. They stayed a week as my guests here at the boarding house. I guess she wanted to show Enzo around. I suppose they get tired of the big city, luxury house and beaches. It's nice to return to your roots once in awhile. You should find the time to relax sometimes too, Professor."

Damon feels sick.

"How...," he has trouble looking for words and needs to start again. "Why would she do that, come here, I mean, keep in touch with you...?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

Damon nods, although he's not sure he really wants to hear the answer.

"In my opinion, Damon... she was still waiting for you. And I was her only connection to her "nutty professor." This place, as simple and remote as it is, may very well have been the only place where you two were truly happy. Does that sound feasible to you?"

"But... she was with Enzo..."

"And?" Zach raises his brow. "You are with that Vanessa girl... Does being with that woman mean you're free of _her_?"

 _He's nowhere near drunk enough for this conversation._

* * *

 _Elena's in love. For the first time in her life she feels like she could fly. The butterflies in her belly are always present whenever she thinks about something he said or when she imagines his face. They let her know that this wonderful thing she's experiencing is not just good sex or a schoolgirl crush. Rather it's a schoolteacher instead, she sports a crazy smile at her last thought. He's a bit older but not that much and he takes her places, shows her things and tells her so much about art, so much more than she ever knew before._

 _She's having fun for the first time since her mother's tragic accident. It feels like she's found a long lost friend because he talks about art and history as her mom did. He's passionate about what he loves and he's passionate about her, she can feel it. He's unable to think straight when she's close and she's enjoying every minute of it. Although it's true that he still struggles when it comes to choosing between her and his work, she knows that she's winning. The feeling is so unlike anything she's ever felt. It's magical, beautiful, it's like falling through the looking glass._

 _It's been six weeks since she met him, five since they ended up in his hotel room... and a full seven since the last time she... Her heart starts beating faster, for few moments it feels like she can't take a breath. This isn't possible. They've been careful or...? The one or two time they didn't use a condom, she was still on the pill. She frantically searches her hand bag for her organizer so she can be sure but she's pretty certain of what she'll find. She's three weeks late._

 _Now what is she going to do? There's no way she can simply walk into a drugstore without anyone noticing. She loves her career but it does have its drawbacks too, like now. Normally she would simply ask Enzo but in this case, it would be too weird. She doesn't have many girlfriends that she keeps in touch with... still... Eventually she asks April, her young neighbor. She agrees and returns a short time later with the test in her hand. She's kind of enough to sit with Elena while the minutes tick down till her cellphone alarm goes off. When they check it, she's not at all surprised to see a plus sign._

 _"What am I going to do?" Elena is in shock._

 _"You're going to tell him and see what he has to say. He's a professor, I hope he'll be rational and responsible. And then you're both going to have to figure it out."_

 _"Thank you, April." The young gal gives her a gentle hug then leaves Elena alone with her thoughts._

 _Elena calls Damon, asking him to dinner. She tells him over dessert. He's caught off guard, she can tell, but promises to come over the next day so they can decide what they're going to do. The same evening she tells Enzo, he's been her best friend and confidant for a few years now._

 _"Tell me what YOU want to do, Elena...?"_

 _"I know it's sudden, unexpected, shocking and I still have a good portion of the movie to shoot but I think I can do it."_

 _"With or without your professor?"_

 _"I want the baby, Enzo. Giving it up is not an option even if Damon..." she doesn't finish, the thought is too painful to voice. She's not exactly sure what his decision is going to be, she's well aware that it's a complication for both of them._

 _Enzo nods slowly and gives her a reassuring smile. "Alright, we're doing this, if this is what you want."_

 _Damon turns out to be a true gentleman. When she tells him the same thing she told Enzo the day before, Damon drops to one knee and pulls out a ring that fits perfectly on that finger. Elena's to stunned to respond but she shakes her head vigorously and buries her face against his chest._

 _"I love you..." she tells him and Damon returns the sentiment. She's so incredibly happy that nothing can possibly ruin her mood tonight._

* * *

Damon spends a few really relaxing days at uncle Zach's and not for the first time wonders, why the hell doesn't he come here every year. _Because he rarely takes vacations._ But maybe he can come for Christmas. Snow, pretty lights, decorated trees, caroling, and the small town atmosphere, it almost sounds like heaven to him.

 _Would Vanessa like it here?_ He almost chokes at the thought. It somehow feels... wrong, terribly wrong to even consider bringing her here. He called her on Saturday morning to tell her he wouldn't be coming home this weekend. He lied again, spinning a tale about unexpected business popping up. He's at a loss to understand why he's doing anything lately but he simply couldn't tell her that he's in Virginia.

On his last evening in paradise he finally finds the courage to tell Zach the real reason why he needed to fly here, how he can't get _the_ dream of their honeymoon out of his head and more reluctantly what Elena accused him of.

"She told you that she believes that you never loved her? Was she wrong?"

"Seriously? What's wrong with you people?" Damon blurts out, raking his hand through his hair. He takes a long pull from his tumbler and then turns on Zach, "Who, I mean what do you think I am? A monster?"

"Relax, son. I may be your uncle, one who is far removed from all of this but what I do know is, you can be an annoying and self-absorbed intellectual aka egghead," Zach jokes, the corners of his mouth lifting in mirth.

Damon swallows thickly and his lips part but no words escape.

"Damon...," his uncle starts again after the moment of levity. Seeing the fallen look on his nephew's face, he pats the top of his hand. "You are a good person. You're more fun than anyone else in our family. But sometimes... you miss the things that matter. Life doesn't revolve just around you and there are things that matter to others too, important things. And forgive me for saying this but there are times I've seen you act just as snobbish as the rest of your family."

Damon opens his mouth to defend himself, but Zach raises his hand to stop him. "Okay, okay, tell me, why did you come here for your honeymoon?"

"We wanted an escape, to be ourselves without having to worry about the press... You knew that, they follow Elena everywhere. I wanted to give her some peace and quiet."

"Was it her idea or yours?"

"Mine, obviously, but she was happy about it, she said she was. She wanted to meet you."

"Was it before she met your parents and sister?" Zach asks, looking rather dubious.

"Um..., she didn't actually meet them. Don't look at me like that Zach. We kept our wedding a secret for a reason. I didn't feel any need to stress her out by introducing her to mother and Katherine. You know how they are. They would have chewed her up and spit her out in the first five minutes. And I haven't seen my father in a long time, you know that too."

Zach holds his breath, "You mean, you didn't introduce her to your family? Before the wedding?"

"No, she's never met them. Everything happened so fast and then... she... and things just fell apart after that."

"For someone as smart as you are..." he shakes his head, taking a swallow of his own drink. "You don't give her enough credit, Damon. Elena is a strong determined woman. How did she get along with your friends... and colleagues?"

Damon rolls his eyes, "What do you think she'd talk with my colleagues about? She knows Ric, he's my best friend and the most fun. I mean, I think they got along pretty well. Ric was even a bit scared of her at first, it was fun to watch..." Damon falls silent when he sees his uncle's face. "What?"

"You are telling me, you married her in secret just because she was pregnant, never told your family or your friends except Ric, brought her here to your only non academic relative so she could feel _equal_? Very romantic Damon, every woman should feel so special," he replies, his voice laced with sarcasm. "It's really ironic, Damon, because Elena _is_ pretty special and quite frankly, she deserved better from you."

"I have no idea what you want me to say? I did love her, I loved her, I wouldn't have married her if I didn't, not even for the baby. I tried to make it easier for her."

"Or for yourself? Please tell me you told her how you felt."

"Of course I did. several times actually."

Zach shakes his head. "Okay Damon, name me three of her movies."

"I don't know any of them. She broke my heart when she left with Enzo. I ... I tried to bury her, I guess. I didn't want to see her or hear her voice. I didn't want to talk to her and I certainly didn't want to see her beautiful face in technicolor on a giant movie screen. It hurt too damn much, it still does."

Damon struggles to take a breath when he feels his heart squeeze painfully. He pours himself another glass full of bourbon and swallows it down quickly, savoring the familiar burn. Then he turns back to his uncle, adding rather softly, "I don't watch movies, not just hers, any movies."

"I know you don't. But that's who she is. Does she know your book titles? Did she go to your lectures or some of your academic events?"

"I suppose, she knew about the last one. Occasionally, a few times maybe? I don't want or need the kind of publicity that is part and parcel of who she is. It's art history, not celebrity Jeopardy."

Damon stops talking when it finally dawns on him what that dream was actually telling him. _It's his fault, he made her feel unimportant. Why didn't she say something?_ He was a bloody idiot to think he couldn't do better as a husband. Zach watches the consternation on Damon's face and thinks the foolish boy finally got the point.

"I... I did this. I never gave her enough credit. I never gave us a chance."

Zach pats his shoulder. "I'd really like to tell you that everything is going to be alright, Damon. But you see, you needed to feel the impact, the wallop so hopefully this illuminating moment will make you a more understanding person. I will admit that I think Elena should have told you how she was feeling but she didn't and we can't turn back the clock."

"Zach, I was so stupid."

"I'll repeat myself, Damon, you're a good man, that's why Elena fell in love with you in the first place. But you needed some tough love here. So just maybe the next time you try, you might actually be successful in this relationship thing."

Zach gets up and disappears into his room, leaving Damon to dwell on the unending inventory of his past indiscretions.

* * *

Damon lays in bed staring at the ceiling. He hears the clock's incessant tick, tock, tick, tock as each second ticks by. It's his last night in Virginia. It's endless and yet he can't bring himself to regret even a minute of it. He feels sick inside when he really considers how Elena must have felt, standing by his side when he was so aloof and unconcerned about what she needed.

No matter the outcome, he knows with utmost certainty what he has to do and who it is that still holds his heart. How could he have ever forgotten where it truly lies?

Heart break is a funny thing, it leaves invisible scars, yet they can be traced by the most gentle of touches. Its power is underestimated. Hearts shouldn't be crushed, they should be cherished and protected, he wishes someone would have told him that. He remembers all too well how much it hurt when she walked out of their place with Enzo that night.

And the loneliness, it breaks the heart into a thousand scattered little pieces and right now the broken part of his misses _hers_ , her face and the way her eyes smile, he misses everything.

He also knows that he probably deserves the cold shoulder that his uncle may give him in the morning. But Zach is a better man than he is. He won't turn his back on his family.

Uncle Zach is how he's always been. When Damon comes downstairs, he gives him a warm smile and a big mug of coffee. The thick slice of bread with butter and honey is a bonus. Once again Damon feels like the little boy who loved it here so much. _Yes, he certainly did forget how magical this place feels._

After breakfast he packs his things and Zach starts the car to take him to the airport.

"So, Damon, will I see you before a handful of years have passed again?"

"I think so. I'll be in touch, you have my word."

Zach nods and Damon thinks he looks satisfied.

"I saw Enzo, you know? Before I left LA. At the airport, hand in hand with a girl who _wasn't_ Elena. He's having an affair."

"And how is that _your_ business?"

"That's exactly what _he_ said to me!"

Zach gives him a pointed look. "And?"

"I'm making it my business. In the space of forty eight hours, everything that was important to me now seems meaningless if I can't share it with her. I'm going to get her back," he pauses, swallowing what's left in his coffee mug.

"Don't look at me like that, Zach, I'm not naïve, I know she may slam the door in my face and I'd deserve it but I can't not try, it's Elena."

A few moments of heavy silence follows after his announcement, he's not even sure how something like that could have left his mouth. _Is he serious?_

"I don't want to be a downer, Damon but I don't know if you can. If you want my humble opinion, honestly... scaling Everest might be easier."

"Why would you say that?"

"Because, you have already given her the one thing she had been waiting for, for years now... Closure.

* * *

 _Zach gave Damon a little tough love but it was necessary. He's going back to LA determined..._

 _Eva and I want to thank you all so very much, we're awed and grateful for your reviews, follows and favorites. You surprise us and inspire us to keep writing stories._

 _Thank you to the anonymous reviewers as well. I cannot respond to you personally. This story is written in its entirety but because of my career schedule, my family, I'm just not able to update every day._

 _Thank you Eva. You're the best, I love you._

 _Chapter title: 'Jagged Little Pill' by Alanis Morisette._

 _"The Children's Blizzard" is in progress. I hope to start posting "Welcome to the Jungle" when it's completed._

 _Many dear friends have stories in progress. Mariah April May, Florencia7 has written many brilliant DE stories. JustiniaKorax, Salvatoreboys4ever, TheLittle MissVixen, Short on words, VitsAsh, Deepwater1978,_ _StarlightSo and Amazing Aisha are among so many others who are helping to keep Damon and Elena alive and well and prospering through their stories._

 _Be safe and have a fantastic day. Thank you all._


	11. Hurts Like Hell

**_Apologies. To make a long story short, someone left an empty plastic garbage bag in the hallway at the hospital, I didn't see it till I went skiing on it, nearly face planted, now I am on light duty as I may have a meniscus tear in my knee. As such I have to work days doing odd jobs to get my hours in._**

* * *

"Whew, I'm glad to be home," Elena mumbles, dropping onto the sofa. She stretches out lazily, laying her head back and throwing an arm over her eyes all in an effort to relax a bit. Not long afterwards, Enzo tut tuts, telling her to sit up. Groaning, she does so and then he hands her an ice cold fresh mango daiquiri. Licking her lips, she takes a sip, sighing delightfully.

"Thank you Enzo."

"You're welcome, I have a phone call to make," he walks out of the room without waiting for a response.

As soon as he leaves, she takes another swallow then sets it down so she can close her eyes again till it's time to eat. She would have gladly spent the weekend idling around the pool while Enzo spoiled her. Still she knows that the solitude would have driven her to boredom after so long.

Her mind drifts to Damon. He texted her on Friday that he fully intends to continue their conversation but that he's going to be out of town for the weekend. _He probably had to run back to NOLA to check on his little fiancé._

Although she protested, Enzo would have none of it. After she finished her scheduled interviews on Friday, he let her relax and take it easy for the rest of the day. However the next day he, out of blue, dragged her out of bed, telling her that they were joining the Mikaelsons on their yacht for a weekend of fishing, swimming and scuba diving. He knew she wouldn't be able to resist although such extravagance is his thing more than hers.

In the end, she was glad to have gone along. With a little prodding from Kol and Enzo, she put on scuba gear and dropped into the water with them. It's really a wonderland beneath the surface of the water. She was in awe of all the brightly colored fish and the coral formations. The highlight for her was when a giant manta ray swam by.

They're so graceful in the water almost like an angel ascending into heaven. She smacked Kol in the shoulder when he yelled shark before she reached the ladder to climb back on board. He couldn't contain himself, he literally rolled on the deck and laughed like a hyena. The food that they served on board. She's never tasted lobster as delicious as the way their cook prepared it.

And now it's Sunday evening and she's completely exhausted. When he comes back in the room to suggest they go out for drinks and something to eat, she throws a pillow at him. Secretly, she hoped Damon might give her a call. _She really, really needs to stop thinking about him, she needs it to end._

Having gotten the hint, Enzo checks the fridge, happy to see that Angela was thinking ahead just like always. A little while later they enjoy dinner that she left for them. Afterwards, they retreat to the gazebo where Enzo whips her up another daiquiri. They share their drinks, listen to the sound of the ocean crashing against the shore and chat about everything and nothing at all.

 _Things are as they've always been between them._

* * *

The flight to LA seems to have no end in sight but it is beneficial for Damon and his renewed sense of determination. He is still a little unsure about his rather out of the blue proclamation to win Elena back but he knows without any semblance of doubt that he needs to try. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't. Perhaps it's too late to patch things up between them but he can't let her go on believing that _she wasn't enough._

If he's going to be honest with himself and he needs to, he wasn't brave enough to start reliving all of his complicated feelings and past mistakes. He's absolutely certain that he's committed many that he isn't even aware of, he dreads to find out how much he's really done to hurt her. _He's a work in progress. One thing, one day at a time._

However, the sudden burst of energy makes him feel restless. He gets even more frustrated when every time he glances at the clock, the hands haven't moved but a smidge. No longer willing to waste away the time, he pulls out his notes for tomorrow's lecture and decides to get some work done. _He's still Professor Damon Salvatore._

Once the plane lands at LAX, Damon hurries through the airport and quickly catches a taxi to get to his hotel. Although he'd like nothing more than call Elena tonight, it's late and he's giving a lecture in the morning so it will have to wait.

When he finally gets back to his hotel room, the first thing he does is strip out of his clothes and take a relaxing shower. Afterwards he calls the reception desk to ask them for a wake up call in the morning. He's tired but he's not yet ready to turn in for the night. His gaze lands on the in room bar so he gets up and opens a couple of the little bottles of bourbon. After pouring them in a tumbler with some ice, he plops down onto the couch and turns on the TV.

While sipping from his glass, he scrolls through the channels. How awful. He turns up his nose in disgust, pausing the moment he realizes that he's doing it again. He just doesn't like TV. He's going to have to somehow learn to at least tolerate it. He leans back against the arm rest and puts his feet up, making himself comfortable. He takes another drink and then picks up the remote to try to find something _decent_ to watch.

For most people it's a mundane task, for Damon it's a monumental one. He gives up after a few minutes and gets up to see if there's anymore bourbon or if he'll have to order a bottle from room service. When he walks back to the couch, his mouth practically drops to the floor when he sees Elena sitting at a table with a guy. It must be some kind of a talk show he deduces. _Elena?_ Unable to take his eyes from her, he feels around for the remote and when he finds it, he turns up the volume to watch how she interacts in her world.

 _"I know it's part of your job, but seriously, I couldn't do this all the time. I admire your tenacity," Damon admits but inside, he's ecstatic. He's experienced so many first times in past six months, most of the time, Elena was by his side to share his delight._

 _"You get used to it," Elena shakes her head with a smile playing on her lips. "I was so proud of you, you did very well," she squeezes his forearm. "I got a recording of it. I'm going to get the champagne so we can toast to your success!"_

 _"It's such a rush," Damon shares when she returns. "They actually wanted to talk about my field of study. It will be helpful when and / or if the book comes out."_

 _"Have no doubt..." Elena kisses him on the lips._

Damon winces as more and more memories flood his mind. He snaps out of its stupor to watch her television appearance. Elena is talking and smiling, she's gesturing with her hands and it's easy to see that she's genuinely invested in her craft. It's exactly as it was once upon a time when they discussed his first TV appearance. How long did he talk to her about his feelings and plans?

And how many of her movie titles does he know? He certainly doesn't know a thing about the movie she's talking about right now. The host continues to ask questions about that Golden Globe nominated movie, Kol's name is mentioned more than once. He watches her watch a short clip of her performance. It's a short scene where she starts crying and actually speaks to the audience without the benefit of words. _She has a gift._

He finds himself unable to tear his eyes from the screen, not even to reach for his bourbon that's on the side table. When the show ends, he turns the TV off and lays awake, eyes open, staring at nothing.

 _He never even finishes the bourbon._

* * *

Elena doesn't get up before noon on Tuesday. Yesterday, they played pool at one of their local pubs. Soon it turned into a small party but going home before kicking Enzo's ass at pool simply wasn't an option. While he was clearly enjoying himself she was pretty much dead on in her suspicion that he was merely trying to distract her. No matter the case, she still got to bed pretty late.

"Coffee?" Enzo asks formally but is already handing her a mug.

She smiles appreciatively, sits at the table and cradles it in between her hands. It's nice, even though it's hot outside once again.

"Is Angela coming today?" he questions, taking his place beside her.

"No, she's coming tomorrow instead, we're scheduled for the audition anyway so we won't be in her way."

Enzo presses his lips together, he knows what she's doing, clearing her schedule in case Damon calls after he finishes his scheduled lecture. It's one of the last ones on his schedule so he doesn't have much time if he even wants to talk to her again. He should tell her...

"Elena, you should know something, on Thursday when I came back, at the airport..."

Elena looks at him to give him full attention. "Yes?"

Before he can continue, Elena's phone beeps and she holds her finger up so she can see who it is.

"His talk concluded early and he's on his way, says he'll be here in about forty minutes," she shares when she raises her eyes to meet his.

"Now?" Enzo lifts an eyebrow and Elena nods. "Okay then." He gets up and starts collecting the dishes.

"What did you want to talk about? We still have time."

Enzo shakes his head 'no'. "It's nothing important. We'll get into it later."

* * *

Damon decides today's the day and that under no circumstances will he take no for answer. Because his presentation ran over its allotted time today, his own is strictly limited. He texts Elena when it's finally is over, telling her that he's going to be there soon. He congratulates himself and sighs with relief when seconds later she responds with an "OK".

He skillfully avoids Mr. Big reporter guy, Atticus Shane. Damon caught a glimpse of him during the Q & A session, the guy is like a bulldog, he simply will not give up. It dawns on him that he should probably be worried that some intrepid reporter may dig deep enough and discover his and Elena's secret marriage. On the other hand, none of them have been successful so far.

45 minutes later he parks the car in front of Elena's house. He catches a slight movement in the window and before he reaches the front door, it's already opening. He tenses immediately when it's Enzo waiting for him. "Professor."

Damon nods but the tension between them is more evident than usual.

When Elena joins them, Enzo whispers something in her ear and then disappears. _Did he tell her or didn't he? What the hell is he supposed to do about that?_

"Did you bring the papers?" is the first thing out of her mouth.

"What? Elena no. Not yet. I actually wanted to tell you something..."

They walk through the house until they reach the living room. Elena gestures for him to take a seat. "We can talk but I thought that we would finish everything up today. I mean, of course I'll listen to what you have to say but... " she pauses to study Damon's face. There's something new about his expression, she can't quite put her finger on it but he doesn't look angry or annoyed. Nor does he seem to be haunted by their past demons either, no it's something different, determination and... _he's focused,_ she recognizes that look. But this is the first time she's seen it outside of his work.

"What happened? What is it that you want to tell me?"

"Nothing happened," Damon shakes his head "no." He wants to sit down and take her hand but he can't. He blinks his eyes and takes a deep shuddering breath to fortify himself. "It may seem strange to you, it certainly was to me but.. last week I dreamt about our honeymoon at uncle Zach's boarding house. I just couldn't understand... why now? Was there something important that I needed to grasp? To latch onto? I was clueless for several days and then... I went there."

"You went to Zach's?"

"Yes, I spent the weekend there and thought about everything, he also told me some... not so pleasant truths about myself and... I came here to tell you... you were right all along. You're wrong about me not loving you... because I did... _I do_... I just wasn't man enough to actually fight for you. I did nothing to deserve you."

Both his voice and the look in his eyes are so intense, Elena's breath hitches. "It can't be..."

"I want you to give me a chance to make things right between us," he continues as if she hadn't interrupted his train of thought.

"What? No! You cannot do this, Damon! You don't get to do this! You can't just say I was wrong and give me another chance. How do I know you mean it? How can I trust you? No. Just no." She avoids his eyes, afraid of what he would so easily see in hers.

 _She can't do it, she was ready to close this chapter of her life and be done with it. Enzo..._

"Fair enough. You don't trust me. Frankly, you have no reason to. I destroyed that..." he stops to collect his thoughts before dropping onto the couch next to her.

"Elena, I'm many things, most certainly the biggest fool on the planet when it comes to you. I know we can't just... wish away that the last three years, pretend they hadn't happened and start again. But I'd... like it if you'd let me... try to redeem myself in your eyes. I'm not the selfish bastard you probably think I am. For the first time in a very long time, I can see things..., I can see you clearly. _Elena..."_

Elena shivers when he says her name like that...

"Damon, you can't just... make yourself feel better at the expense of others. I won't, I can't let you hurt me again. You have a fiancé and I..."

He shakes his head back and forth vigorously. "I don't have a fiancé, not anymore. Nor do I have a girlfriend. I couldn't come to you with this until I had everything figured out. Quite honestly, it still feels like my head is inside out and upside down but I knew that I had to let go of her before I came to you. It wasn't fair to you, Elena. I'm so sorry that I did so many things to hurt you."

Their raised voices alarm Enzo, who comes down to check on them. Elena stands there in shock, her lip quivering, her acting ability abandoning her but this is real life, not fantasy.

"What's going on here?"

A wave of rage and protectiveness surges through Damon. "If you're doing it because of some noble sense of loyalty... Did he tell you?"

"Tell me what?" she turns to Enzo.

He can tell she's on verge of a break down. _Damn it, Damon, you had to bring this up now?_ His eyes never leaving Damon's, he explains. "Tell you that he saw me holding hands and sharing kiss with a girl at LAX last Thursday."

Damon's eyes travel to Elena. He scrutinizes her face but he's surprised when she simply shakes her head.

"Damon I know everything about Bonnie, she's an airline attendant. She's been Enzo's girlfriend for almost two years now."

* * *

Deafening silence follows Elena's proclamation. It takes Damon a minute to absorb what she just said. His mouth parts and he's almost at a loss for words. When he can finally string two words together, he blurts out, "What?"

His eyes dart back and forth between Elena and Enzo. He's stunned and nearly speechless, finally he adds, You mean... you're okay with it?"

"Not that it's any of your business, Damon, but yes, I am," she says calmly, not looking like she wants to elaborate.

"Alright...," he tries hard to ignore Enzo's mocking face. "I... you're right, it's none of my business. I'm going to take my leave."

Elena opens her mouth, maybe to stop him but she doesn't. _She won't complicate things any further._ She follows him to the door, preparing to say goodbye. _Again._

Tomorrow or the day after he'll bring her the papers and she'll sign them. Maybe it'd be easier if Enzo picks them up? That way she doesn't have to face him again. She almost collides with Damon's form when he suddenly stops and turns to her.

"It's not over, Elena. I've been a first rate ass and a damn fool all rolled up into a messy little package. But if you know one thing about me, you know that I'm determined. I am going to do everything humanly possible to make this right. For you. For _us..._ if you'll let me. _Please,_ if nothing else, at least consider it. I understand all too well that I have no right to ask this of you but I can't not. I'll do whatever you want afterwards, if that means saying goodbye, I will. But please, give it, give me a few days?"

He looks at Enzo, who appears in the background and before Elena can come up with any response, he says, "I'll be in touch" and then hurries out the door.

Elena turns to Enzo and lets out a frustrated sound. "What am I supposed to do now!?"

Enzo comes closer and wraps his arms around her. "I know," he murmurs. "You can put his number on your ignore list, just like before and sign the divorce papers when he gives up. But we both know it's not the option you're going to choose."

* * *

Damon is feeling rather beaten, despondent even by the time he enters his room. He considers calling it an early night but he feels edgy and in dire need of something to smooth the edges. When he's in a mood like this, nothing is more suitable than a _fine_ glass of bourbon. As luck would have it, the only good fortune he seems to have these days is that the hotel bar happens to stock a good one.

It's probably a smarter move to get something in his stomach first but the last thing he wants to do is run into some of his colleagues. The ones that came for his lecture today and although he appreciates that they made the effort to come to hear him speak, he's not in the mood to talk to them or anyone else for that matter. It dawns on him that this is the first time in recent memory anyway that he didn't want to discuss his profession. Sighing, he makes up his mind. Shower first then decide what to do about the bourbon?

After a nice, hot and long shower he still isn't sure whether or not he should go out. His dilemma is solved as soon as his phone beeps with a message:

 _Meet me in the lobby._

Enzo?

Damon's heart starts beating faster and harder, whether it's from the familiar irritation that Enzo always brings or is it nervousness? _Did Elena send him?_

He dresses quickly and takes the stairs as the elevator was moving at snail speed. At least it felt that way to his unsettled mind. Once he reaches the lobby, he takes a look around, wondering if Enzo is even in the right hotel. Just as he's about to turn around and go back to his room, he sees him standing up from the armchair near the reception desk, sunglasses in hand, his usual Levi's jeans, designer tee shirt and Armani leather jacket. _His perfect self_. Damon mentally scowls at the vision. When he reaches him he realizes that Enzo's probably not the ass here, he is.

"Enzo? Why are you here? Did something happen?"

Enzo shakes his head "no" and gestures for Damon to follow him. He whispers a few things to the hostess and then heads right for a corner table. Clearly Enzo arranged for the quiet table before calling him.. While they're waiting to place their orders, Enzo looks at him contemplatively and Damon _hates it._ He suspects the bane of his existence is clearly enjoying seeing him squirm.

"Look Enzo, first off, I'd just like to say I didn't mean to get you into trouble, nor did I want to hurt Elena. Nor was it my intention to use your situation to my benefit. I was just fucking angry that you would cheat on her. It's just that I'm in the dark as to what the deal is between the three of you..."

Enzo rises an eyebrow. "Really Damon? Are you sure you're thinking clearly even now?"

The waitress who's name is Ruby comes to the table and takes their orders. Damon can't help but wonder if Enzo is following some insane Hollywood diet or if it's normal for him to have a salad and chicken strips for dinner.

"Okay," Enzo starts as soon as Ruby leaves to tend to another customer. "I really want some answers and you're going to give them to me."

 _Strange, that he doesn't just tell him to go to hell and walk away._

"Why this sudden turnabout? You show up here after three years, demanding Elena sign your divorce papers so you could marry your little assistant and now you pull a one eighty and want to save your marriage?"

Damon sighs, "I know I must look bipolar to you, maybe even a little nuts but I had sort of an 'epiphany' when I was at uncle Zach's."

"So this epiphany as you call it, it's that new? You can't just stroll into town and turn Elena's life upside down all over again when it appears you couldn't even figure it out for yourself. I'm telling you right now, Damon, that's not an option."

"What gives you right to talk to me about this? Shouldn't it be Elena telling me to get lost?"

"Calm down, Professor. I've been with Elena for nearly every minute since you broke her heart. For months afterwards, I had to watch the fallout of what you did to her. That right there is what gives me the right. And when I say _with_ Elena, I don't mean "with" Elena, so you can get that notion out of your head once and for all. I'm not going to let you hurt her again. Don't even try to get around me because _Elena_ is who said that. She has a great future, she's going somewhere, her career, her star power has never been brighter. She has a life, family, friends, everything she needs, why should she even consider getting involved all over again with your pretty face?"

"Dammit, Enzo! I don't know, the only I do know with absolute certainty is that I can't NOT try. If she's going to divorce me, she shouldn't do it because I've been an idiot or because she thinks I didn't love her or that she wasn't enough," he chokes on the last words that spill from his mouth.

"You are the one who asked for the divorce," Enzo points out. "Did you really break up with up with your girlfriend?" he asks skeptically.

"I did," Damon _really_ doesn't want to get into it, it's nothing he'd be proud of.

"When exactly did you find the time to do that and please don't tell me you broke up with her in a text because that's cold even for you."

"I said I did and I did and no, I didn't text her. Do you want her number so she can tell you herself?" Damon's fuse it lit now. He picks up his glass of bourbon and swallows down half of it.

"Don't have a coronary. I believe you."

"How... how come you are not _with_ Elena? Everybody..."

"Yes," Enzo waves him off, "everyone knows it. No, Damon, we're not together. But it's convenient for Elena that they think we are. The paps don't follow us around and speculate incessantly about her or whoever she attends a premier with. The guise of a "stable relationship' is best for her career and it's _everything_ to her. It works because she can just relax and _play her role,_ " Enzo gives him a meaningful stare. "We've been friends for years, Damon. We built her career, shared food and the roof over our heads. We bought the house together. We, are in this together."

"But... back then? I believed..."

"I know exactly what you thought, Damon. We weren't lovers back then either. We, have never been together romantically. She would _never_ cheat on you and I'm not that desperate that I need to make the moves on another man's girl. I'm not saying 'wife'... that she's never been. A 'wife' means a partner, an equal. You did everything you could to make her feel like she was neither of those things."

Damon feels the pointed barbs piercing his heart but he has to ask. "Was there... anyone else?"

"Apparently, you are the only one who found it easy to move on, Professor."

* * *

After dinner, a strikingly quiet Enzo surprises him when he automatically follows Damon to his room, settles in the armchair and accepts the drink he pours for each of them.

"I'm not going to bother you for too much longer. But I need to make sure that my message is clear," he pauses to take a sip. Licking his lip, he compliments Damon on his choice of bourbon, but quickly returns to the topic at hand.

"I'll fight you tooth and nail if you try anything that's going to end up hurting her again. And know this, Damon if you do hurt her, I'll hunt you down and hurt you. Bad. Mark my words, even if it's the last thing I do as a free man, I will end you. Fatally. At this point, Professor, you don't deserve her. Give me one reason why she should even entertain the thought of giving you the time of day."

"I love her Enzo."

"Spare me, Damon. It was me who had to lift her spirits time and time again when she thought she failed not only as a wife but also as a mother. It took months and months of me encouraging her before she finally started to believe in herself again. She would doubt her performances, wondering if she presented her character in the right way. Over and over again, I told her that she was the best. It was me who held her hand at awards shows when they were announcing her name as one of the nominees. It was me who got wasted with her when she won and it was me who held her hair back when she puked her guts out. Everyone, me, her mom, Kol, his family, we were all there. You weren't. Think about that," he says firmly and takes a long pull from his glass.

"I know she told you many things, but were you listening when she told you how you made her feel invisible when you sent her home instead of introducing her to your colleagues? Were you paying attention when she told you that she canceled a big after party just so she could be there when you gave your first lecture? Or how unimportant you made her feel when you didn't want to introduce her to your family? She lost hers, her mother was in a coma and on top of dealing with that, she could see that you were ashamed of her and of her livelihood. You were too much of a coward to introduce her to your mother and sister because they might turn their noses up in her presence. She deserved better from the man who supposedly loved her."

Enzo finishes his drink and stands up, grimacing when he looks at the man who caused so much pain to his closest friend.

"Elena.. she's like the mute girl you never bothered to get to know. She doesn't talk about her pain but she still communicates. Find her, get to know her, prove yourself to her. But unless and until you're ready to do that... Stay the hell away from her."

The door clicks behind him, filling the room with deathly silence. Damon takes a swallow and reaches for his jacket. _Enzo has no idea who Damon Salvatore is either, he didn't become what he is today by running away at the first bump in the road. And he's not going to waste another minute wallowing in it._ He finds the business card that Elijah gave him and presses the numbers.

"Mr. Mikaelson? Elijah, I'm sorry for calling so late but this is important. I want to reassure you that our appointment for later this week is still on but I need your help."

 _"Of course, Dr. Salvatore, how can I help you?"_

"I just need a favor. Can you please give me your brother Kol's number?"

* * *

 _I know some of you want to stab him for treating her that way but a lot of it is related to his upbringing. There was no emotion in his home, remember he said his mom was like a drill sergeant, she'd turn away when he tried to kiss her and that he didn't blame his dad for leaving. Self awareness isn't his best trait but he's a work in progress as he said._

 _Thank you all so much. We're stunned by the response to this story. You are all simply the best of the DE universe. Eva and I will keep trying to bring fresh and new versions of Damon and Elena to you. We just started working on "Waiting For A Star to Fall."_

 _Eva, I love you dearly. Thank you for everything you do for me._

 _Chapter title: 'Hurts Like Hell' by Fleurie._

 _TCB concluded Wednesday. Thank you so much for loving that Damon and Elena too. I have ideas for a circus period piece too._

 _Watch for "Welcome to the Jungle" to start posting, hopefully next week. This is the synopsis: Old adversaries reunite when a long missing body turns up on her property. Raw passion ignites, haunting memories return and suspicion burns white hot... And which one will claim victory in the deadly game of cat and mouse that ensues?_

 _Have a safe and wonderful evening and weekend. We'll see you next week._


	12. Time Is Running Out

_Damon knows that he's going to be dead on his feet by the time his Tuesday lecture rolls around but it can't wait. He needs to do this now. Luckily, he finds a flight from Richmond to New Orleans. His arrival time is 19:45 so he should have plenty of time to speak to Vanessa, take a shower and hopefully catch a nap before he has to catch his noon flight back to LA._

 _As soon as he steps outside, he flags down a taxi and gives the driver the address. He's certain that Vanessa won't be there, she still keeps her own apartment. She does have a key so she can check up on him when he's home and his place when he's on the road. He's not sure exactly what he's going to say to her but he knows with absolute certainty that it needs to be done._

 _After paying the cab driver, he goes into his place and immediately strips out of his clothes to take a hot shower and change into some clean stuff. He pulls a bottle of water out of the refrigerator and then stretches out on the couch. He feels the butterflies in his belly but he doesn't want to delay the inevitable. Picking up his phone, he takes a deep fortifying breath and presses her icon for the last time._

 _"Damon!" she squeals, sounding pleased. "I'm so glad you called. Is everything alright?"_

 _"Hey Ness, I'm actually here in NOLA, can I stop by?" he sighs mentally._

 _"Really? Are you okay?"_

 _Damon avoids her question. As much as this needs to be done, he hates that he has to hurt her. "I just need to speak to you."_

 _There's a short pause from her end of the line before she responds. "Of course you can, you should have come here directly from the airport anyway."_

 _"I'll be there soon." Damon doesn't wait for the response and ends the call. This is going to be fucking hard, but he's sure about one thing. Now that he finally owns his past mistakes, he knows that he's doing the right thing._

 _Half an hour later he's ringing Vanessa's doorbell, his heart heavy but his determination fierce. Vanessa lets him in with a beaming smile, standing on tiptoes to kiss his cheek as he doesn't offer anything else. She's a little taken aback, he can tell, but he just gives her a tight smile and continues into the living room._

 _"Why didn't you use your key?"_

 _"Didn't feel right," he mutters pulling it out of his pocket having separated it from the rest earlier._

 _Vanessa looks at the key and then back at Damon. "What are you telling me, Damon?"_

 _"Ness, I'm really sorry. You have no idea how sorry I am but it doesn't feel right to marry you now..."_

 _Their conversation is a short one. Damon's hating himself for having to do this to her but it's only right. He never should have asked her to begin with, somewhere deep down, he's always known that he didn't love her. It isn't fair to keep her on a string when he's in love with Elena. This decision is what's best for all of them. Vanessa doesn't feel the need to yell at him or threaten him, she's not making a scene but he can hardly blame her when she tells him to go now and walks out of the room._

 _He lays the key on the table before he leaves._

 _An unexpected rain shower splashes his heated skin. He turns his face to the sky to absorb it along with a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder. He continues down the sidewalk. The rain feels good although he doesn't know why. Damon Salvatore is not one to enjoy this kind of weather._

 _When he sees the time flash on a fluorescent sign, he realizes that it's not that late. He pulls out his phone and calls his best friend. Who is he kidding anyway? What he needs is someone to lend him an ear and give him a healthy glass of bourbon. If he doesn't fix his life soon, he's going to become an alcoholic. He slides into his car and takes the right turn that leads to his house. Soon afterwards he finds himself standing in Ric's doorway. The happy face Ric greets him with lifts his spirits a little. At least there's one person who is happy to see him today._

 _"Are you sure about this?" Ric seems to be in shock when Damon explains his reason for being in New Orleans today._

 _"I'm sure. How can I marry Vanessa when I'm still in love with Elena? It's not fair to her, she deserves better. There's so much to think about when it comes to my wife. I don't even know if there can be a future for us and yet if I had a choice to make between the two of them, there would still be no choice to make. That thought makes it even more clear... It's Elena that I want to be with."_

 _"You sound sure!" Ric laughs at Damon's struggle with words, that's a first for his erudite friend. "Man... when it comes to Elena, you've always been a goner."_

 _"Yes I have but sadly, I didn't know what I had when I had it."_

 _They drink a lot and Damon's sure he won't be getting any sleep tonight. He's in no hurry to go home. After procrastinating for as long as he dare, he finally looks at his watch and knows it's time to get his things ready so he can get to the airport in the morning. He leaves his car at Ric's because he is in no shape to drive and the walk will do him good. It does nothing to relieve everything that's weighing heavily on his conscience though._

 _A few hours later he's all ready to go to the airport when he remembers the book, The Da Vinci Code..., the one he never finished reading after Elena fell down the stairs and their daughter's life ended. He puts his bag aside, goes back to the bedroom and pulls open his dresser drawer. Carefully placed under his t-shirts, there it is. He opens the book to the place he stopped reading. He feels his heart squeezing, painfully so when he sees the picture that he used as a bookmark. Three and a half years have passed since the last time he held it in his hands._

 _It's time to finish the story..._

* * *

Having had another successful presentation, Damon answers one final question before hopping into his rental car to go back to his hotel for a quick shower and a change of clothing. He cinches the towel around his waist and then struts into the bedroom. He drops the towel and then slips on a clean pair of boxers, his favorite jeans and a Varvatos tee shirt, he picks up a bottle of water then hurries outside to go meet with the youngest Mikaelson. When he arrives, he's directed to Kol's location.

As soon as he sees Damon, he waves him over.

"I have hours and hours of downtime," Kol reassures him confidently when Damon comes to stand beside him. _That's not exactly reassuring._

"We can talk now but I won't be done here for a couple of hours. Afterwards we can stop for some takeout and I'm all yours, Professor."

Damon knows he should probably feel honored but it's going to take some time for him to get comfortable in the man's presence. The guy is doing him a great favor and he needs to not feel annoyed in this atmosphere or in his presence. For Elena's sake and probably his own, he needs to put some effort into it.

He can admit that Kol hasn't given him any reason to feel so uptight in his company. _He's not going to change overnight and he's more than willing to try but right now, he's a work in progress._

Over the next few hours, Kol gives Damon ample opportunity to change his opinion about him. He's Elena's dear friend and colleague and not at all what he expected. For that he has to give Kol credit. The young man is surprisingly down to earth, smiling all the time, treating crew and fans alike with kindness. He's impressed by his unselfishness. During breaks in the filming, he not only shows Damon around but also signs autographs and jokes with his co-workers. His scenes are effortless and Damon can't help but feel respect for him.

It's ironic that just a week or maybe two ago Damon would have thrown this offer right back in his face. Eventually Kol is ready to leave. It's been an exhausting day shooting outside and yet he looks excited about the prospect of spending the evening with the erstwhile Professor.

Damon is aware that Kol received at least four messages since he's been here, no doubt offering him a more interesting evening than what he has in mind.

"I can't wait till I tell my brother I had dinner with you, he'll be so jealous!" _That explains his enthusiasm, at least a little bit.._ "What will it be, Damon, Chinese, Thai, Greek or good old Mexican food?"

"Chinese is ok."

"Well, we could go for pizza I guess, but..."

Kol's house is probably not that far from Elena's and it's everything Damon would expect from a movie star. The essential swimming pool and beach access makes him chuckle slightly. Everything is white except for a little color with the furniture and the throw pillows. It's tastefully decorated but his walls are covered with classic movie posters. There's Gone With the Wind, Casablanca, Citizen Kane, King Kong, the 1933 version, Damon has to chuckle when he notices the Wizard of Oz print.

"What's the deal between you and Elena? I know you probably think I'm a shallow bastard but I'm pretty perceptive. I've noticed how Enzo tenses up when you're around."

"Err, nothing Kol. There's history between us. And a problem that needs solving."

"I'm aware," Kol gives him a wink. "I'm not as clueless as you seem to think, Damon. The vibes between you two... Ouch. But what's happening with you right now? _Why_ now?"

"Let's just say I took a good look in the mirror and I didn't really like who was staring back at me."

* * *

"Come, professor," Kol invites Damon, gesturing to follow him. The interior is even more impressive as they get further into the place. There's a personal touch to it as well. There are pictures of his family, Elena and Enzo too. His heart jumps a little when he sees the huge smile on her face, one that he _didn't_ put there. The young man really does have good taste which surprises Damon although he knows it shouldn't. He stops in his tracks when he sees The 'Mona-Lisa' among other great works of art.

"You made one for Elena too, right?"

"Yeah," his face lightens up even more. "She put it in the living room," he adds. Damon can tell he's proud of the fact. "Alright Professor, I still think you would have a better experience watching it on the big screen but this will have to do."

Kol leads him to a large room, a screening room. Although not theatre sized, there's a huge screen on the wall. Damon laughs shortly, his eyes widening at the opulence.

"Wow Kol, I'd certainly say this comes close."

Kol nods with a satisfied smile. "Now sit. Watch. Be amazed.."

Damon forgets about his Chinese, he just can't tear his eyes from it as the love story unfolds before his eyes. _She's astounding._ Damon needs to remind himself to take a breath more than a few times. Kol comments once in a while about their Golden Globe movie but he's mostly silent, not wanting to disturb his guest's experience.

Damon is mesmerized by her presence. It's almost as if she's right here in the room with him. It's a WW2 era movie, the title is _'Tomorrow'._ Elena is playing a young mute girl, Katerina who loses her parents tragically to the Gestapo and is taken in by a childless couple. She finds Kol's character hiding out in a theatre, the two of them share an incredible bond and fall in love over the course of many months. When their characters make love, Damon can feel his face heat up. _Her body is still exquisite._

He glances over at Kol who doesn't look the least bit embarrassed. Ultimately the Gestapo finds him and sends him to the Theresienstadt Concentration Camp. By some miracle, he survives his confinement and is reunited with Katerina before the end credits begin to appear on the screen. He could not be more proud of his wife's stunning performance.

When Kol switches off the projector, Damon sits for a few moments silently, unable to react. Kol gives him a beaming smile. "You know, she's incredible, it's impossible for me or any actor quite honestly not to be good next to her, she motivates you, challenges you to be better, to reach higher. Elena has a gift. Now professor, even you have to admit that this was a work of art."

Unable to take his eyes from the screen, he simply admits, "It was, she was brilliant."

* * *

Atticus Shane pushes his chair away from his computer screen. He can't explain it but he's become rather obsessed with Professor Damon Salvatore. His gut instincts have never failed him and the gnawing sensation he feels in his belly won't go away. There's something about that man that he just can't quite put his finger on. He has tried repeatedly to keep a tail on him. The problem is that the guy has a sixth sense, it's like he can feel his presence and always manages to give him the slip, sometimes in the blink of an eye.

He's gone to a few of the guy's lectures just to see what he could learn but hours of boredom is all he came away with. His boss even hinted that he should give it up, leave Damon Salvatore alone and move onto some real news or another of dime a day celebrity scandals. Although he doesn't know why, he can't get rid of the feeling that there's a story there waiting for him to find.

Today he actually got something accomplished. He was staking out the location, the set of Kol Mikaelson's newest project. Although he shouldn't have been because Kol is actually pretty down to earth, he was surprised when he came out to speak to him and some of his cohorts during a break in filming. He hopes to have a good scoop to report to his boss by this evening.

Atticus gets the surprise of his life when who should he see, the one and only, _Damon Salvatore_ walking side by side with the young actor. He stands back, trying to stay hidden so Damon won't see him. He looked none too pleased the last time they crossed paths. Not today, he waits and watches hoping to figure out what these two are up to.

* * *

After visiting with Kol for a little while, Damon says goodnight to his host. He's had his eyes opened and he leaves Kol's home a changed man. He'd like nothing more than to drive straight to Elena and Enzo's house to tell her about all of these crazy and confusing new feelings but that's not fair to her. Not yet. He's not ready. _She's_ not ready either, not after everything he's done to make her feel less than desirable. If only he could turn back time, take a fresh look and realize what he had when he had it.

Damon needs time to process all of this, it's happening so fast that his head is a maelstrom. He's needs to try to make sense of it all but most of all he needs to somehow prove to her that he's not doing this on a whim, that he's deadly serious about trying to change things between them. Most of all, he needs to earn back her trust which he so carelessly let slip from his fingers.

He needs _time_. And that's something that he doesn't have. By the end of the week he's scheduled to return to NOLA to go back to the classroom. He knows Vanessa will cover for him as she's professional enough not to let their personal life prevent her from doing her job. However this is not a matter of days or even weeks. Enzo made it clear that he wouldn't let him near her before he proves to him that he's not the same person that arrived in LA just a few short weeks ago. _How is he supposed to do that?_

He parks the car in the hotel's parking ramp and sits inside for a few minutes to let all the chaotic thoughts settle. While relaxing in the shadows he catches a little activity several cars from his. _He can't believe his eyes, is it that damn reporter again?_

He gets out of the car and locks it and in a normal pace walks to the elevator. Just as he passes Shane's car, he quickly grabs onto the door hand, pulling the annoying little man out of it.

"What the hell?" he fumes, glaring at the reporter's terrified eyes. "You never give up do you?"

Atticus takes off his sunglasses. With a shaky voice, he warbles, "Doctor Salvatore... What a coincidence."

"Try again," Damon mocks, yanking his form and propping him against the car.

"I... I.. I'm sorry for...following you?"

Damon scowls, looking at him with disgust. "People like you are the reason why I really hate this Hollywood crap." It's a relief being able to vent his frustration out loud. "I don't understand why on earth you would target _me_ as someone important to follow?"

Atticus recovers from the shock of being jerked out of his car quickly. "I didn't actually follow you... today," he adds quickly when Damon raises an eyebrow, signaling that he isn't buying his bullshit.

"I was at the location of Kol Mikaelson's new movie. Quite honestly, Dr. Salvatore, I found it interesting that you were there. When I saw you two leaving together, I followed _him_ home."

Damon gives him a mocking grin. "You must be bored to death, listening to my lectures, lying in wait for hours while scoping out houses and hotels... And you get _nothing_ for your efforts. I bet your boss isn't happy with you either."

Shane's sour expression tells him he's not far from the truth.

"I have to admit I have found nothing worth publishing yet. But I find all of this very interesting, your friendship with Kol, his brother Elijah, which would be understandable given his interest in the arts and sciences. I saw them at one of your lectures. And then there's the fact that you are clearly a member of Elena Gilbert's inner circle. I'm intrigued by the fact that she's dating Mr. St. John and yet you seem to be tight with her. You are quite the celebrity among academics and yet there's never been any mention about you in connection to... Miss Gilbert?"

 _He's fishing,_ Damon knows and his face stays stone cold. "And? If you think I'm going to spill my guts just because you pointed out some random coincidences, you can think again because you're only going to be disappointed."

The journalist grimaces, there's always a chance he can deduce something from his targets by their facial expressions but clearly the good professor is nothing if not a smart ass.

"Alright, professor, I'll quit digging. _For now._ Hopefully you can accept my apology for disturbing your evening. I'm just going to go home now."

Damon nods and steps further away from him. Shane slides behind the steering wheel. Just as he reaches to pull the door shut, he turns his head aside and delivers a parting shot.

"I saw Miss Gilbert at your lecture too, incognito." Before Damon can retort, Shane steps on the gas pedal and drives off.

 _Did he just say that Elena was at his lecture?_

* * *

Damon is tempted to go after him but he has no idea where to look. Something tells him that he hasn't seen the last of the intrepid reporter. If he did jump in his car and try to find him, he'd be playing right in Shane's hands. It would alert him even more to the fact that there is a story between himself and Elena. It's been both an illuminating and an exhausting day. He yawns just as the elevator doors slide open. He jumps in and pushes the button for his floor. When it dings, he drags himself to his room.

The shower helps him relax, still, when he's lying in bed in the dark room he can't fight it any longer and allows himself to think about what the stalker told him.

 _Elena came to his lecture. Incognito._

He goes through all the possible motives that could bring her there, but there's always just one possible outcome.

 _She still cares._

What _proof_ can he give her, that he's not the same self-centered moron that he once was. He grimaces when he thinks about himself and the fact that he was too blind to see what was right in front of him. A man who couldn't pull his head out of his ass long enough to keep her from fleeing.

Elena is the only one who has ever been able to obliterate his walls and see him at his most vulnerable. Vanessa couldn't and now he wonders what he ever saw in her. He shakes his head in disgust at himself.

He was too busy denying what he had with her and too full of stupid excuses that he not only pushed Elena away but he also hurt her. That thought alone makes his heart squeeze painfully. If only he could turn back time?

Despite his inner turmoil, he closes his eyes and falls asleep in no time.

* * *

The morning sun creeps into the room reminding him that he forgot to close the blinds last night. Squeezing his eyes shut, Damon turns around, hoping to go back to sleep for a little while. However, his mind has other ideas and soon he starts contemplating the last few hours. Did he really spend the evening with Elena's actor friend watching one of her movies? He turns onto his back and throws his forearm over his eyes as some of the powerful scenes from the movie fill his head. He wishes he wouldn't have wasted so much time.

Several days pass and he hasn't made any head way. With his time in LA dwindling, pangs of desperation begin to gnaw at his insides and prick at his heart. Dropping his face into his hands, he weaves his fingers into his hair and tugs in frustration.

 _What can he do? What proof can he give her...?_

And suddenly, he knows what he has to do. He jumps out of bed and calls room service to order breakfast. He dresses up quickly and while he's waiting he's searching on his laptop for the address he needs. By 8 a.m., he's already on his way, hopefully the business opens its doors early. As soon as the taxi drops him off at the Celebrity Magazine offices, Damon steels his resolve and goes inside.

Atticus Shane almost has a heart attack when Professor Damon Salvatore storms into his office. His eyes widen and he pushes his chair back so he has a little room to bolt if he needs to. _Maybe the good doctor has reconsidered or maybe he wants his head on a platter?_

"What... What can I do for you Dr. Salvatore?"

Damon drags the chair across the floor, turns it back to front and straddles it. Very meticulously, he crosses his arms over the back of it and leans forward with a deadly gleam in his eyes.

"Quite frankly, Mr. Shane, I'm out of options and _you_ are going to help me."

* * *

 _Thanks to each and every one of you. We're in simply in awe of your kindness and support for our stories and for sharing your love for this beautiful couple known as Damon and Elena with us._

 _Thank you Eva. You're the best. I love you dearly._

 _Kol and Elena's movie is our story "Tomorrow" if any of you are interested. In the story, Damon is the Kol character._

 _Chapter title: 'Time is Running Out' by Muse._

 _Welcome to the Jungle is in progress._

 _Have a fabulous day and a wonderful weekend. Thank you all again, you're the best._


	13. I've Gotta Get A Message To You

After a week of nonstop interviews and appearances, Elena finally has a day off. Before plopping into her bed face first last night, she told Enzo in no uncertain terms that he was not to awaken her unless there's a fire or an earthquake. Next week they go into pre-production for her next movie so this morning, she's sleeping in. It's all Damon's fault that she hasn't been able to get any rest. No matter how hard she tries to wipe him and his promises from her mind, she simply cannot do it. He still consumes her and no matter what she does, she just can't shake him.

 _So much for being over him._

She's hot so she kicks one of her covers off and tries to go back to sleep but her mind is a whir of what ifs. Yesterday, she was almost disappointed when she didn't hear from him. It's been some time already since he professed his love and proclaimed in no uncertain terms that he was going to fight tooth and nail for her and for them. She's well aware that his series of lectures are about to end, he's probably packing his things to return to NOLA now. She should have known better.

Frustrated, she blows out a puff of air, her lips vibrating as she turns away from the window and tries to catch a few zzzz's. She nearly succeeds when Enzo storms into her room. Elena opens an eye a crack and glares at him.

"What?" she rasps, raising up on one elbow.

"Well, there's a fire and not just any fire, a Towering Inferno sized fire... and an earthquake swarm," Enzo tells her in a conversational tone.

"What the hell are you talking about? You're not making any sense," she tries to tune him out by covering her head with the pillow. Enzo rolls his eyes, grabs the remote and turns on the television.

 _"We have quite the scoop to share. The newest issue of Celebrity Magazine is causing shock waves to reverberate industry wide. Popular A-list actress, Oscar nominee and Golden Globe winner Elena Gilbert apparently has been secretly married to well-known writer, Professor Damon Salvatore for over three years. He is the author of several number one best sellers in the art history genre._ _Dr. Salvatore shared this information with Celebrity mag reporter Atticus Shane."_

Elena springs up in bed, her eyes nearly popping out of her head when she sees a picture of her and Damon on the giant screen. With her mouth hanging open, she gawps in shock for several seconds. "What the..."

 _"We both wanted to focus on our careers which is why we decided not to go public with the news of our marriage. Now the time has come for us to consider building a family and to make the marriage our top priority," Dr. Salvatore is quoted as saying. This is the most exciting news, we'll keep you posted. This is Carmen Taylor reporting for Entertainment Today."_

Enzo makes himself comfortable beside her on the bed then clicks the TV off. Still in shock, Elena looks at him with wide eyes and her mouth still agape. Enzo gives her forearm a squeeze. "I know what you're trying to spit out," he chuckles, having never believed the stodgy professor would have the stones to do what he just did.

"You're trying to say, what in the hell did he do? Clearly, he's taking this _change_ business quite seriously. Damon is sending you a message. He broadcasting not just to you but to the entire world biggest news to hit the industry in some time... It's his way of telling everyone that he's not ashamed of the marriage and...," he gives a dramatic pause, "that he wants to fight for you."

Enzo's sporting a face she's not quite sure what to make of, it's a decidedly uncharacteristic look for him, one that she doesn't recognize.

"Why are you looking at me like that and what the hell are we gonna do?"

"I'd say, there's not much we can do other than hope your nutty professor finally has it figured out and just go with it. He's done the one thing that he believes will prove to you that he's deadly serious about your marriage and that he really wants you to give him that second chance he talked about."

 _Is that an amused glint in his eyes?_

"You're impressed," she blurts out and gives him a shove. Elena's not sure which is the bigger shock in all this, Enzo's 180 or the 20 kiloton bomb that Damon just dropped.

 _He_ actually gave an interview to a Hollywood tabloid about their _secret_ marriage. She white knuckles the sheets as she considers when and where the next aftershock will rumble, the paparazzi will have a field day with it.

"I underestimated him. I don't think he did _this_ on a whim, El, I think a lot of thought went into it. He's fighting with everything he has."

Elena nods, she needs a few minutes to absorb this new earthshaking development. Enzo's already on the way out when he pauses and turns around at the threshold.

"Oh, and btw. Get dressed and prepare yourself for a crazy ass day. Roger's already on the way over here with copies of the magazine. We need to put our heads together and come up with the best way to deal with it. A million of people have already called, mostly tabloids, but also TV and industry people. However, your impish little friend, Kol has called at least a half dozen times and your mom called too. So chop chop!"

Elena falls back on the pillows when the door shut behind him.

 _This is going to be hell of a day._

* * *

Damon is at the drugstore the first thing Friday morning to purchase the newest issue of Celebrity Mag. _How ironic is this, given his traditional view of such crap?_

There's a big headline on the front page, _ELENA GILBERT'S SECRET MARRIAGE._ The small print says all the details are inside.

He should probably feel relieved that his scoop was done in such a hurry in an effort to squeeze it into the newest issue. Otherwise, he wouldn't be staring at picture of his and Elena's faces on the front page. After picking up a copy and a cup of coffee from the soda fountain, he pays for his purchase and walks across the street to the hotel. He flips through it on his way to his room, finding the article soon enough to start reading it in the elevator.

There's a short interview with the promise of more to come in the next issue. He swallows thickly at the picture of Elena at the Golden Globes Awards, she looks stunning in her navy blue gown, her face beaming as she holds the award in her hands. There's a smaller picture of him that was taken during one of his presentations and there's also the one that Shane snapped at his office. Stepping out of the elevator, he takes a breath. All of this, the headline, the pictures, his interview, it's more than enough to turn both of their lives upside down.

 _What if Elena hates him?_

Only now does he realize that what he's done is irrevocable. The thought is both terrifying and exhilarating. For the first time in a very long time he certain that he's doing what's right for the woman he's still madly, inescapably in love with. He's doing this for _them._ They are doing this _together._

Sure, he should have asked her first... if she was alright with him going public.. No matter what, they're still in this _together._ If she hates him for it... well... he'll cross that bridge when he comes to it but he hopes with everything in him that she doesn't

With a sigh he throws the magazine on the couch and calls room service. While waiting for his breakfast, he stares at the magazine cover as if it waiting for it to bite him. Before he can blink, his phone starts ringing. His eyes widen when he sees it's Katherine, wondering why she would call at this hour...

Then the hammer falls, _It's on the news. He pretty much screamed it from the rooftops._

His phone doesn't stop ringing for several hours.

* * *

 _"This is quite a bombshell that you've dropped, Dr. Salvatore. What made you finally decide to go public about your secret marriage to Elena Gilbert?"_

 _"I wouldn't exactly say it was a secret. We just didn't feel the need or the desire to share at that time. We had a small, intimate wedding and we honeymooned in Virginia. As our careers grew and Elena's star brightened in the year following our marriage, we decided to focus on ourselves rather than proclaim to the world that we were man and wife. There's a lot of pressure in both the acting world and the academic world so in all honesty, we decided to take it one day at a time._

 _As the years passed, we always thought that the time would come but neither of us were in any hurry. Elena was working steadily and the job offers were rolling in and I had my own career. I didn't want her to have to sacrifice these amazing roles so for the last couple of years, we buried ourselves in our own careers. And now the time has come for Elena and I to return to 'us'. We'll do that together as a couple and I expect that our marriage will be better than its ever been."_

 _"Indeed. Why now and why just you? Why didn't you and your wife issue a joint press release?"_

 _"During the series of lectures that I've been giving about different themes related to art and art history, I've had a few questions about my personal life, whether I'm married, seeing anyone special, those types of questions. I just didn't feel the need to avoid or lie about it any longer. There is no need. I'm very proud of my wife's accomplishments and I want to be able to share that with her. It was time."_

 _"Miss Gilbert has always been very private about her personal life. It's well known among industry people and her fans that she shares a house in Malibu with her manager, Enzo St. John. Many people, myself included, have long suspected that they were a couple. What are your feelings about her living with another man?"_

 _"Enzo has known Elena longer than I have. He's been her manager for years and they're as close as two people can be. Quite frankly, I could not be more grateful for his presence in her life."_

 _"So to the best of your knowledge, there's no romance there?"_

 _"Definitely not, but I'm sure Elena can better explain their relationship than my poor power to do so."_

 _"Thank you, Dr. Salvatore for your time and it's my sincere hope that we'll get to talk again very soon."_

Elena snorts at the last answer as she finishes reading the article. She's well aware that she will have to come up with a believable explanation for everything. How Damon ever managed to make that slimy Atticus Shane write a fair story is beyond her? When the interview started, they talked a little about his books and lectures, almost like they were trying to downplay the bombshell till Shane was ready to go in for the kill as it were. Damon handled him with ease and skill of a well seasoned professional but he's always had the ability to mesmerize his audience. The questions about their marriage flowed naturally.

 _She's still in shock that he really did it._

She raises her eyes, meeting Enzo's when he peeps inside. "Are you done reading the article?"

She nods. "I am, it doesn't sound bad still..."

"Trust me, I know."

Elena gets out and follows Enzo back to the living room. She can hardly maintain a straight face as she watches Roger pacing back and forth.

On the verge of hysterics, he gets in her face, "How did I not know about th.. thi.. this secret marriage of yours?"

Enzo, clearly amused by the other man's freak out, hands him a drink. "Because, Roger, it was none of your business. Elena's marriage was ...," his eyes shoot to her as he considers how to word this sensitively, "put on hold and neither she nor Damon wished to make it public. Therefore there was no reason to share it with you or anyone else. As a matter of fact, Elena wanted to forget about it for awhile and as you very well know, it definitely didn't affect her ability to give a killer performance?"

Elena sighs, she knows Enzo's trying to down play it but Roger is right, they need to take it seriously. The last thing she needs is to have her character questioned. She can't deny that she does sort of feel for her publicist. Without him, she knows that her career wouldn't be what it is. His job is to know everything and foresee everything down to the most minute detail. When he falls into the chair and drops his face in his hands, Elena can see how exhausted he looks.

Peeking at her through split fingers, he sits up and finishes off his drink. In the next minute, he's all business again. "Alright you two, what's done is done. We need to figure out the best approach. We should come up with our own statement."

After refilling his tumbler, he sits back down and eyes Elena. "What are you going to do now? Move to NOLA, bring your husband here? Is he or isn't going to assume the role as your official escort or is Enzo going to maintain that title? And how and when are we going to announce that he has his own separate but also successful career? That might actually be the smart thing..."

"Roger, they already know that he has a successful career in his own right. But you know what?"

Both men look at her, as a new, confident tone sneaks into her voice.

"It's not on you, Roger, it's not for _us_ here to decide. This is between my husband and me. Somehow _we_ will figure it all out together," she looks at them with a challenge. Enzo is strangely quiet as Elena studies him, trying to translate his stance.

 _Is that approval she sees?_

Roger however has a different opinion. "Elena, of course it's up to you and him to decide but your fans and the press are expecting some kind of a reaction. We need to discuss..."

"No, Roger, I am not discussing this with you now. And I will make a statement in due time, but this doesn't concern you, or the fans and certainly not reporters."

Roger is nothing but persistent. "But your husband made it public when he opened this can of worms... the way he..."

"I just want Damon!" Elena whines. The last few weeks have been exhausting and the last thing she needs is turn this... _his_ gesture, statement and confession all in one into work.

"Go away!" she blurts out which earns her a smirk from Enzo who then turns to Roger.

"Look buddy, I'll tell you what. Why don't the two of us give them some space tonight and then the first thing tomorrow morning, we'll all get together and decide on the best course of action. We can craft the perfect statement and then you can release. The press can keep up the supposition for another day."

Roger doesn't look happy, still he gets up and turns to Elena. "I'm sorry, Elena, but you know as well as I do that they're not going to let up until we give them something tangible."

Elena gives him an unexpected hug. "I know Roger, and I'm sorry too, but for today, just please turn off your phone or else tell them that a statement will be forthcoming. Tomorrow, I'm all yours, you have my word."

* * *

A little shaken after everything, Damon cautiously stares at his phone. The damn _thing_ hasn't stopped ringing. It started early this morning and now it's late afternoon. If not for Elena, he would have smashed it against the room's fireplace several hours ago. He has returned some calls but most of them he said to hell with it. Katherine was rather indignant about finding out about her brother's marriage at the same time as the rest of the country. She also warned him that their mother will be none too pleased either. Damon is still thanking his lucky stars that she's out of the country attending a symposium this week.

When the phone starts ringing yet again he almost jumps on the couch. Now who? Shaking his head, he looks at the screen. It's a number that he doesn't recognize. Hesitantly he puts the phone to his ear.

"Hello?"

 _"Relax Damon. It's my home phone. I wanted to see if you'd pick up and how you'd react to an anonymous caller,"_ she quietly laughs and it's the warmest sound he's heard since... forever. _"How are you holding up?"_

Elena.

His heart skips a beat and just like that he knows he'd go through all of this again, through hell itself, just to be able to hear the gentle tone in her voice, he forgot how wonderful it sounds.

"Elena... I... I am. I'm sorry I did this without your consent. Honestly it was the only thing I could think of that might actually convince you that I was serious about fixing me, fixing us."

 _"You might be right about that. I know from personal experience that you're hardly an impulsive person. This, what you did.. is totally out of character."_

She's still smiling, he senses it and he would walk over hot coals if he could keep it on her face and continue listening to her beautiful voice for the next untold number of hours.

 _"You didn't answer my question, Damon,"_ she continues, _"How are you really holding up?"_

"To tell you the truth Elena, I want nothing more than to flatten this phone beneath my boot. Alaric called, he told me he wasn't the least surprised because it was always fire and thunder between us."

 _"Really? I would never have guessed that he thought that. To tell you the truth, I thought we were a little boring."_

"That's because you believed my act. I.. I.. well I thought that the boring, stodgy professor type was what lit your flame. We're not boring, Elena. I bet Ric was, maybe still is a little jealous of us," he pauses, rubbing his right temple with his fingertips. His head feels like he has a jackhammer slamming against the inside of his skull.

 _"I'll have to ask him about that.. but listen Damon, you still haven't told me how you are doing."_

"As far as holding up, I'm okay for now... well that is until my mom and Katherine get their hands on me. Mom is going to murder me all the while keeping a smile on her face."

Damon shudders a bit at the prospect of coming face to face with her.

 _"Don't be so melodramatic. I'm sure your mother isn't going to kill you."_ Elena laughs again, she can't believe herself how giddy she feels. She knows there's a lot to discuss and it won't be pretty, but for now, she's just relishing the fact they miraculously seem to be on the same page.

His candor is actually so encouraging that she blurts, _"I... wanted to ask you, if you'd like to join me... you know for dinner?"_

Damon's breath hitches. Is she really inviting him over? Maybe she doesn't hate him for turning her life upside down after all? He would love to make a stupid, Damon-like joke if only from the pure happiness he's feeling but he doesn't. Their truce is brand new and fragile and the last thing he wants to do is blow it to bits before it can start to take hold. And also because he'd much rather kiss her senseless. That thought alone makes him uncomfortably hard.

"I'd like that," he finally says.

 _"Then I'll see you soon...?"_

"You can count on it."

* * *

 _Damon was pretty desperate to get a message to Elena. And now he's made sure that the whole country and probably part of the world knows they're married._

 _Thank you all so very much. Eva and I are grateful beyond words._

 _And Eva, thank you for being on this road with me._

 _Chapter title: 'I've Gotta Get a Message to You' by the Bee Gees._

 _We'll see you all next week with more of both this and 'Welcome to the Jungle'._

 _Have a fantastic day and a phenomenal weekend. You're all the best._


	14. Whatever It Takes

Even though he's a bundle of nerves inside, Damon forces himself to relax and take his time. He can't help the beaming smile that forms on his face over the fact that she actually invited him to come over. As badly as he wants to be with her right now, he also wants to prolong this glorious feeling that makes him feel like he could walk on air.

The first thing he needs to do is take a shower, shave and change into some clean clothes. It's too early for dinner but he wants to get an early start so he can stop somewhere and pick up some flowers for her. When he's all done, he splashes _her_ favorite cologne on his face, grabs his things and then walks out of his room, locking the door behind him.

Just as he's about to go into the elevator, his phone rings for the millionth time today. This time when he looks at the number, he's sporting a big smile yet again, well to be honest, it hasn't left his face since he said goodbye to Elena... _He never wants to lose this feeling._

"Uncle Zach!" he answers. Looking around, he quickly detours into the stairwell so he won't lose phone reception as he makes his way to the parking garage.

 _"Damon? I can't believe what I've been seeing and hearing all day. I'm more than used to seeing Elena's face in magazines and on TV but you? You could have knocked me over with a feather when I happened to catch a portion of your interview."_

"Do you buy tabloids, Uncle Zach? Damon teases when he can get a word in.

 _"I only buy them to keep tabs on Elena. Now spill."_

He chuckles nervously. "Yeah, it was kind of a spur of the moment decision. She needed to know that I was serious about fixing us."

 _"What does Elena have to say about all of this? Don't get me wrong, I'm proud of you but shouldn't you have discussed it with her first?"_

"Yes, I should have, Zach, but I didn't know how else to get the message out that I was serious about her and us."

 _"What did she have to say about your... err... announcement_ _?"_

"I'm actually on my way to see her...," there are signs of uneasiness in his voice. "I guess she'll tell me then."

Zachary is clearly amused. _"Well, you're still breathing so I think that bodes well for you. I know I cautioned you that it wouldn't be easy, I still believe that... A lot has happened in the past three years but with all of that said, I have to hand it to you. You're a purposeful man and have a reason for doing everything you do. Oh and remind me never to bet against you."_

"Thanks, Zach..." he adds. He's truly happy that his uncle called to give him some encouragement.

 _"Good luck Damon! I hope everything works out for the two of you... I really do. But listen, _I have another call coming in so I'm going to say goodbye but there's one more thing I want to say.. Don't make yourselves so scarce."__

Damon stuffs his phone back in his pocket then climbs behind the wheel and starts the engine. He takes a breath to calm his wildly beating heart.

* * *

A little on edge herself, Elena takes a look out of the window now and then, she's still waiting to see his car pull up. She's not worried that he won't show, not at all but she can't help the tangle of nerves that is gripping at her belly. It makes her wonder if Damon is feeling the same.

If Enzo was there, he would laugh at her and crack jokes to lighten the mood. Instead he decided to give her, _them_ space and left to spend the night with Bonnie. Elena isn't absolutely sure that Bonnie is really in town or if Enzo just used her as an excuse to get out of the house for the night. Either way, she's grateful.

When she hears the sound of an engine, she pulls the curtain aside. Finally, she sees Damon parking his car. She watches him get out then reach for something in the backseat. She smiles when she sees the flowers. As soon as he starts walking towards the house, Elena rushes to the door, pulling it open before he can raise his finger to push the bell.

Damon pauses, swallowing thickly at the sight of her. She's so incredibly beautiful dressed in a casual pair of yoga pants and one of his old tee shirts. In his mind, she's never looked more beautiful. Suddenly he feels very possessive and literally has to stop himself from touching her like he so desperately wants to. When she steps aside to let him pass, he wraps the fingers of one hand tightly around the flower stems while tucking the other one into his jeans pocket. He congratulates himself for keeping his composure by cracking what he hopes is a convincing smile.

Elena feels like she's in a dream, one she never believed would actually come true. She gestures for him to go to the living room and follows behind.

"I know it's not that late and I don't know about you, but I'm famished. It's been such a crazy day," she adds, winking at him.

Damon knows she's just joking but he still feels guilty because her insanely busy day is a direct result of his interview with Shane. He swallows another apology, because there's no point in repeating it again and again. Instead he gives her a small smile.

"I know what you mean by crazy."

Her smile is radiant as she leads him through the living room and out of the house. On the terrace, there's a table set up surrounded by a few chairs. She motions for him to sit. Before she can join him, her phone starts ringing with the familiar melody. She looks at the display and presses ignore and Damon once again fights to maintain control of his emotions. He turns to face the sea and comments, "Your view, it's gorgeous, the beach is so close..."

Elena nods and excuses herself for a minute. She's back quickly, carrying two plates. _She actually made dinner for the two of them._

"Now eat Damon, we can talk later."

"Alright...," Damon slowly takes the knife and fork, "just tell me one thing. Wasn't that song supposed to be my ring tone, mine alone? Why would you change that?"

Elena pauses at the unexpected question - but she's done pretending. "I just missed it, Damon," she says simply but truthfully. "You stopped calling and I wasn't sure I'd ever hear it again. So I use it for everyone."

* * *

Damon takes the last bite of his Chicken cordon bleu, swallowing it down with a sip of the Prosecco that she served with it. Along with the chicken she made a salad with a delicious vinaigrette dressing and asparagus. The meal was heavenly so much so that he licks his lips after polishing off what was left on his plate. Damon sets his fork down, picks his napkin up to dab his mouth and hands before refilling their wine glasses.

He would like nothing more than to praise her from the rooftops but he's so embarrassed that he ever doubted her, he finds himself at a loss for words. It's weird how the mind works. He wishes there was something that he could say to make everything alright between them but there isn't.

How he yearns for the simplicity of the old days when things were just that, uncomplicated. The one thing he knows with absolute certainty is that he needs to rebuild her trust in him. It's going to be a step by step process. However long it takes, he's not going to run away, not this time or ever again.

He's literally exhausted by the time he picks up his glass to take another swallow. He stares in awe at the woman in front of him. If only he could turn back the clock, he would do it in a heartbeat. His mouth feels dry so he takes a long pull from the flute. After clearing his throat, he is finally able to utter a few words, his voice sounding half strangled with emotion.

"Dinner was incredible, Elena, thank you."

Elena smiles radiantly. "Thank you. I thought you might enjoy it.

 _What a fool he's been? He doesn't deserve her now, he didn't then either and if he's to be honest with himself, he knows he doesn't deserve a second chance._

He can tell she's just as reluctant to start their much needed but inevitable conversation as he is so the first thing they do is carry the dishes into the kitchen. He surprises her when he takes charge of washing them.

As soon as he finishes, he knows they could both use a drink. He takes some ice out of the freezer and finds his way to the living room bar without any trouble. He opens the refrigerator and pulls out the fresh fruit. Elena cocks an eyebrow when she watches him whip up her favorite Watermelon Margaritas for the two of them rather than have his usual bourbon.

"Where is Enzo?" Damon asks when they settle back in the living room with their drinks.

"He decided to spend the night at Bonnie's, at least that's what he said. Tomorrow's probably going to be a busy day, so he wanted us to have a break... If, _this_ , can be considered a break," she adds as an afterthought, her hand gesturing back and forth between them.

 _This would be funny if Damon wasn't so nervous._

"When...," Elena continues, "are you leaving?"

Damon looks at her closely, _she's still worried._ "Not before we figure this out, Elena."

Elena nods and he can see she's starting to relax a little bit more.

 _The elephant in the room needs to be dealt with. They are both nervous and anxious but if this is what they want, then there's no reason to hesitate any longer..._

He makes the decision, gets up and joins her on the couch. Elena looks at him curiously but it warms his heart that she doesn't move away. He takes her hand in his.

"C'mere."

Elena shifts a little closer and with a gentle urging of his hand, she leans against his side. It feels _so_ right. Damon closes his eyes for a second relishing the feeling of having her close again. He didn't realize how much he'd missed this till he breathes in her orange blossom perfume. It's still his favorite.

"We _will_ figure it out, Elena," he murmurs into her hair.

And just like that the dam breaks, he can feel tears begin to prick at his eyes. He takes several deep breaths to try to pull them back.

"I'm so, so very sorry for making you feel like I didn't love you. I've done so many things to hurt you, so many things that made you feel anything and everything but happy. I was such an idiot. It's entirely possibly that my picture is next to the word in Webster's," he laughs rather inappropriately, smiling tightly when he feels the simultaneous squeezes of his heart and his hand in hers.

"But I do love you Elena, so much. You were right, I was stupid and didn't want to give in, I don't like losing control and it happens all the time when I'm with you. But being without you is much worse."

Elena's silent for a minute, before she looks up at him and _damn, he so wants to kiss her_ but he's frozen, mesmerized by the sight of her big doe eyes staring right into his soul. No, he won't kiss her. She deserves better. She's his _wife._

"I know that I have no right to ask you for anything but do you think that you can forget about the divorce..?" he whispers. Somehow he's able to withstand her searching gaze, although the intensity of it makes him very, very small.

"You're the one who showed up here waving those papers before my eyes," she points out.

"Actually it was you who wanted it first...," there's no accusation in his voice, just curiosity. "Why did you, Elena...?"

She looks aside, but knows she needs to say it. The healing needs to begin right now.

"Because... I was hurt. Angry at myself and at you. That's when I went to a lawyer."

"But... you never finished. And now when I...," he can't even repeat how stupid he was, "you didn't sign either?"

Elena sighs and looks back at him. "When you didn't sign mine, I was hoping... thinking that maybe the fact you didn't meant that you really did not want to lose me anymore than I wanted to lose you. I was hoping that you'd come for me."

* * *

Damon can't believe how badly he screwed up. He convinced himself that it was Elena who abandoned him when in reality it was he who did the abandoning. He would tell himself over and over it was for the best and that despite the gnawing feeling inside, he somehow thought that Vanessa was the one for him. Not only did he hurt Elena terribly, he also hurt Vanessa. He'll thank the stars till his dying day that he had his epiphany before Elena could sign the divorce papers, still he wishes that he could erase his relationship with the other woman.

After finishing their margaritas, they link hands and go for a walk along the beach. Elena takes her shoes off and digs her toes in the sand, occasionally dipping into the Pacific itself. The sky is a beautiful blend of colors, pinks, oranges, yellows as the sun sinks, beginning its descent into the horizon. Topaz sunbursts of light reflect against the calming blue of the ocean, the waves lighting up like cylinders of flaxen gold light. Small waves crash against the shore and the salty smell rushes into her nose as she breathes in the fresh air.

Somehow they end up in her summerhouse. He's glad that she's enjoying the evening here despite the fact that Shane violated this sanctuary not very long ago. Damon pauses to take in the sheer beauty of this place. The halo of towering cliffs color the edges of the beach, they rise up into the sky as the gods gallop across the pinky orange crests of the clouds. He snaps out of it when he hears the dulcet tones of her soft voice.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, anything."

"How did you get Atticus Shane of all people to write only what you wanted to be revealed rather than our whole story?" Elena asks, concentrating on him as if she's reading his thoughts.

Damon gives her a small smile. "That's for me to know and for you to dot, dot, dot..." he quips, gesticulating wildly with his finger.

Elena giggles, "You will have to tell me though. We're going to have to fix our reputation."

Damon moves closer to her and for a long while they just sit and listen to the sounds of the ocean. Damon is enjoying this peaceful moment immensely but he knows there's one more thing that needs to be addressed tonight. He reaches for his wallet, carefully pulling out the precious picture, revealing it to Elena.

"You still have it?" Elena's stunned, he can hear it in her voice, it's also a little shaky and he knows if he looks into her eyes, he'd find them glistening, the same way his are.

"I finished _the_ book. On the flight from NOLA," he knows it's the only explanation she needs.

"Ah... I'm stunned, you hated it, saying something about it being shallow, far-fetched entertainment."

"Surprisingly I actually didn't hate it. It has little in common with Da Vinci and science," he laughs, winking at her, "but it was quite entertaining. As you well know, I didn't do fun back then. When you gave it to me, recommending it highly, I wasn't ready to delve in just yet. Nor did I want to admit that I enjoyed it."

Elena carefully takes the sonogram picture from his hand, gingerly smoothing the edges.

"I remember tucking it in the book's pages to keep it safe. I know it's silly but I kept it in my sock drawer. Maybe I, maybe _she_ was waiting for me to come to my senses."

Damon puts his arm around her and pulls her into his chest, staring at their unborn daughter's picture in her hand.

"I was so horrible to you and to her. We should have mourned together, instead I drove you away. I would give everything I have to be able to turn back the clock but I can't, Elena. I'll regret that time for the rest of my life. I'm so very sorry..." he repeats again, brushing his lips over her hair so wispily that she doesn't feel it.

Elena's voice is shaking when she whispers, "Let's mourn her now for a few minutes, just the two of us, Damon. I'm so sorry too that I wasn't more careful. You were right, I should have kept _her_ in mind when I decided to fly..."

"No, no, Elena, you weren't wrong, you didn't do anything wrong. It was all me. I shouldn't have asked you to stay home, I should have come with you instead to make sure you were both safe. It was a horrible, tragic accident and please believe me when I say this, it wasn't your fault. It was one of those freak things that happen to good people sometimes," he pauses to brush a strand of hair behind her ear. With blue staring into brown, he tilts his head slightly adding, "I want to say something else that I've come to realize."

"What's that?"

"When two people are meant to be, nothing and no one can end them. They may get lost a time or two on their journey but true, real love will always win out in the end. Nothing can compete with it. Others may attempt to fill the void but eventually the two will be reunited. That's the beauty of true love, Elena, you always end up with the right person at the right time regardless of anything else. I'm sorry that I didn't fight for you and for us, for all three of us, I'll regret that till my dying day..."

"Damon?"

"We've been given this incredible opportunity to start over, Elena, I'm never going to let you go again."

"We did lose our way," Elena whispers, her voice thick with emotion. She can't hold her tears any longer. She turns to him, throwing her arms around his neck. For the first time since that tragic day, she cries in her husband's arms.

* * *

 _They needed this. Both of them._

Damon keeps Elena close and doesn't care that many tears have also escaped his own eyes. Their loss was so unimaginable. She'd be three now, sitting on his lap while he reads her a bedtime story. God, why did he waste so much time being away from his wife, time that he'll never get back?

Some time passes before Elena raises her head to look into his eyes. Tenderly he brushes her hair from her face, tucking it behind one of her ears. "I should probably go..."

"Now?" Elena sounds surprised and that warms his insides.

"I can't, I won't pressure you into anything. I kind of forced your hand with my big announcement and speaking of that, I don't think I said thank you for not turning me into shark bait." She laughs, it's real and genuine, the sound is music to his ears.

"You're welcome, but really, Damon, you don't have to leave. You can stay in the guest room if you want? I mean, you'll need to be here in the morning anyway. My publicist Roger is going to be here and Enzo will be back. We have to decide what we're going to release to the public."

"Alright," he agrees, despite his hesitancy, he doesn't want to leave her now. He doesn't want to leave her ever again...

In the end, they spend the night right there in the summerhouse, falling asleep with their bodies entwined.

* * *

 _Eva and I want to thank you all so very much. You keep us excited and motivated, without your support, we wouldn't be here._

 _Thank you Eva. I love you dearly._

 _Chapter title: 'Whatever It Takes' by Lifehouse._

 _I did update_ _"Welcome to the Jungle" yesterday. It's officially our longest story ever. It's a crime drama, slow burn DE story._

 _Thank you all again, you're the best there is in the DE fandom. Have a wonderful day and weekend, we'll see you next week._


	15. Starting Over

With Elena asleep in his arms, Damon feels like he's died and gone to heaven. Her skin is so soft and her hair shimmers under the glow of the moonlight. He cannot remember the last time he felt so content. He brushes his lips across her hair and then glances outside at the Pacific ocean. The full moon illuminates a swatch of the sea. It glistens as the waves slowly lap against the shore. Sequin-silver stars like the scattered embers of a dying fire wink down at him, illuminating the otherwise inky curtain of sky. It dawns on him that he's never taken the time to appreciate such simple beauty, not since they parted anyway.

He remembers being angry and bitter after she left with Enzo, in the ensuing three years, he kept his wedding ring on for a very long time. He didn't date, Vanessa would accompany him to faculty parties and dinners but it was as friends, nothing more. It was only after he caught a glimpse of Elena and Enzo in a romantic looking pose on the cover of People Magazine at the airport, that he finally asked Vanessa out. One thing led to another and looking back on it now, he can't believe how stupid he was, rationalizing why she would be a good match for him. With the benefit of hindsight, it was an abysmal attempt to move on from Elena.

He snaps out of his reverie when the sounds of the sea pull him back. Throwing his head back, Damon shifts just slightly so as not to disturb the goddess in his arms. Reaching for his glass, he swallows what's left and then settles back, hugging her impossibly tighter as if she could be swept from his arms in a millisecond. No, he's never ever going to be such an incredible fool ever again. Whatever it takes to earn back her trust, he will do it, even if that means relocating.

After pressing one more kiss to her head, he closes his eyes and leans back. He releases a barely audible chuckle when he remembers his meeting with the self professed, _intrepid_ reporter, Atticus Shane. Damon refused to take no for an answer, instead he barged right into the guy's office to tell him what his terms were.

 _"Um... Professor, how can I help you?" Shane asks carefully, ever so slowly putting a little distance between himself and Damon. He wants to be out of reach if the guy tries to land a punch._

 _"I have a story to tell and you can have the exclusive. However you will adhere to my conditions, meaning that you won't cross any lines nor will you write anything that I don't approve beforehand."_

 _Shane breathes a sigh of relief when he comes to conclusion that he is in no immediate physical danger from Damon Salvatore. "How do I know it's a fair offer for me? You have more or less admitted here that there is something to be found. So if I dig deep enough... " Although he already knows he's going to accept the professor's conditions, he wants to see how far he can push him._

 _"... You will find nothing. There's zero evidence that you can get your hands on. Too few people are privy to what I'm about to tell you, that is unless you don't agree to my terms."_

 _"Alright. What is this bombshell story you're alluding to?"_

 _"Consider yourself warned. If you try to cross me, I will end you. No one will hire you by the time I'm through with you. In case that's not clear enough for you, if you double cross me, you can say goodbye to your career. for.. ever.."_

 _Shane gives him a tight smile. He has no idea how he could actually destroy him but he can tell by the determined look in his eyes that this man means every word. Something tells him that Dr. Salvatore would either make a fierce friend or a dangerous enemy. "I'm aware. Now why don't you tell me what all of this is about.."_

 _Damon's pretty sure he now has the reporter's full attention. "What if I told you... that I'm married to Elena Gilbert?"_

* * *

Damon feels like he's walked through a minefield, every muscle in his body aching, by the time he wakes up. His entire body aches. It takes a minute to realize that he's at Elena's summerhouse. _Did he stay here all night?_ He tries to move his hand to see what time is it, only to find that he can't. _What the f**k?_

And there she is, lying on his shoulder, her arm draped across his chest, her hair tickling his skin. Her soft puffs of breath against his nipple awaken other parts of his anatomy but he quickly controls himself. Dropping his eyes to her beautiful form, He stares at her in awe. _Is this even real?_

He remembers a hundred times when they woke up together just like this and yet this time feels different. As carefully as he possibly can, he tries to stretch out his limbs but Elena tightens her grip on him and he grins. _To hell with it, who needs limbs anyway?_

Elena slowly comes to her senses. She cracks one eye open to assure herself that it's really Damon's body serving as her pillow. _She loves his masculine scent._

"Morning," he whispers, giving her a beaming smile.

Elena has to open both eyes to see that it's not another dream. "Morning," she responds, stretching her back like a cat. She sits giving her husband a look considering the position they slept in. "You must feel stiff."

Damon finally stretches his now numb limbs. "Yeah, but it was totally worth it," he teases with a wink.

Elena giggles and then stands up to free him. "Come on, lets get some breakfast before Enzo and Roger show up."

She offers her hand to help him stand up. He stretches a little himself. Even afterwards, it's not easy to make his stiff body budge but soon they're on the way back to the main house. They settle in the kitchen with a big mug of coffee and a bowl of cereal for each. They eat in silence occasionally giving each other glances and smiles.

Enzo arrives at nine and Roger's on his tail not even a half hour later. Enzo does the introductions when he lets him in. "Damon, this is Roger, Elena's publicist, Roger, Damon, Elena's husband."

Roger looks at him like he has two heads weighing him carefully. Damon can see that the man isn't quite sure how to approach him. He's used to dealing with show biz people but it's clear from the way he's looking at Damon that he considers him an anathema.

 _Funny, just a few weeks ago Damon considered himself in a different category as well._

Enzo pats Roger's shoulder. "It's alright Roger, Damon is an art history professor. Although it's new, he's quite normal really."

Damon can't help but chuckle, more than grateful for Enzo's new attitude towards him. It's pretty hot outside, so they settle in the living room again, with cold drinks.

"Ehm," Roger starts. "Can we just talk about the announcement now?" He looks at Elena, then his eyes slip to Damon. "You, Professor, made quite a mess of things yesterday, now we need to fix it."

 _Here comes the fun._

* * *

By the time noon rolls around, they're able to come up with a plausible sounding press release. Damon somehow manages to persuade Roger that giving Shane one final interview is a good idea. Elena and Enzo sit back and watch because it isn't often that Roger finds himself at a disadvantage while sparring with the professor.

They start talking about a possible photo shoot at Elena's house when the doorbell rings, signaling another intruder. Enzo rolls his eyes as he prepares to deal which whoever barges through the door. Surprising even himself, Enzo is a bit relieved to find Kol instead of another journalist or a throng of paparazzi. He stands back and out of the way when Kol storms into the living room, pointing his finger accusingly at Damon.

"You! I can't believe you played such a charade. You came into my house, enjoyed my hospitality and still you didn't utter a peep. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because, KoI, at the point, no one except Elena, Enzo and I knew. I swear to you that I had no plans to tell anyone, I wouldn't... I couldn't... not before I discussed it with Elena."

Not giving any quarter, Kol goes toe to toe with him. "Don't give me that bullshit excuse. A mere one day later, you spilled everything to Shane. Don't you dare try to tell me that you weren't already planning to tell the world."

"I know it sounds suspicious but I truly didn't plan it, it just happened. You have my word..."

"What are you two going on about?" Elena asks, seeing this argument could go for awhile.

"Damon stopped by the set on Wednesday to ask a favor. As soon as I was done shooting, we went to my place for Chinese cuisine and a movie. Before you ask, we watched "Tomorrow"" he says, taking his gaze off of Damon to focus in on Elena. "We were together the whole fucking evening and he simply forgets to mention that he's your husband?"

All pairs of eyes turn to Damon. Elena is stunned. _Did he really... spend the evening with Kol to watch her Golden Globe winning movie? It can't be._

"DId you really...," she starts but doesn't need to finish.

"Yes," Damon interrupts her, leaving her speechless.

Kol only now notices Roger. "Hey man, I didn't even see you." He finally backs down, giving Damon a wink and then shakes Roger's hand. "I gather you're here to save their asses?"

With Kol present things get much lighter and funnier, and they soon move on to topics other than their marriage, however Damon's not sure what Elena thinks of everything, so he follows her onto the terrace.

* * *

Damon stands behind the sliding glass doors, his arms crossed over his chest and stares at the beauty in front of him. She's standing on the deck, her hands clutching the railing. Since he can only stare at her back, he assumes she's looking at the majestic Pacific in front of her. The water is such a gorgeous blue. He could listen to the sounds of the waves crashing against the shore for hours. It's so peaceful. Feeling an over powering need to be next to her, he slides open the door and steps beside her.

He kisses the top of her head and wraps his arms around her, her back to his front. "Are you angry?" he asks softly, dropping another kiss to her temple.

"And why would I be angry?" she answers with a question of her own while turning around in his comforting embrace. When he drops his eyes, he finds himself falling through the looking glass all over again. Her eyes are as rich as the earth's soil, stained with the color of hot chocolate on a cold winter night that wraps around, engulfing him in their warmth and making him feel at _home._ Her voice pulls him from his reverie.

"Damon?"

Breathing her in, he brushes a kiss to her forehead before answering, "Well... because, Elena, I didn't tell you. I used one of _your_ friends to fill in the gaps... regarding my deplorable lack of knowledge about your career."

"I wouldn't put it like that... You asked one of my friends to help you out. You actually spent the evening with him although we both know Kol is probably the last person you'd willingly choose to spend an evening with. You sacrificed your precious time to acquaint yourself with my movie, I don't really think that I have a reason to be angry at you."

To his greatest relief, she sounds impressed rather than angry.

"But," she continues, "why did Kol have to tell me, why didn't you?"

Damon pauses for just a moment. He embraces her a little more firmly and lays his chin on her shoulder to stare out at the ocean just like she is. "Because, Elena, I feel kind of embarrassed that I didn't know anything about the movie. It was... incredible. You were incredible. Kol was right. You should have won the Oscar."

Elena relaxes into his embrace. "Thank you..."

"No, I thank you. For giving me, for giving us another chance."

* * *

 _"Are you planning second honeymoon?"_

 _"It's entirely possible, Jenna. Of course, if we do, we'll find somewhere quiet. And to be quite honest, it doesn't matter how much we both love what we do and that our careers draw attention but we do get tired of constantly being in the public eye," Damon shares, handling their joint television interview like a pro._

 _"Elena, will it be harder now to pursue new projects given that often being on location causes long separations? Many marriages have crashed and burned under lesser things."_

 _"We're not the first nor will we be the last couple that have separate careers. Somehow Damon and I will figure it out."_

The conversation continues, Enzo nodding to himself as they watch the airing of the _Jenna Sommers Show_ that Damon and Elena filmed yesterday. "He's good," he comments to Elena. "Are you sure you didn't miss your calling Damon? It seems pretty obvious to me that you would make a fine actor."

Damon, descending the stairs with his bags chuckles. "You would know. You're the guy responsible for Elena Gilbert's stellar career."

Elena stands up accepting his embrace when he reaches her. The last few days has been crazy busy, Damon moved into their house and together they worked on interviews and press releases, eventually agreeing to do the TV show, which Roger was greatly appreciative of.

Now it's time for Damon to get back to NOLA and Elena has three weeks of shooting ahead in a smaller role she accepted some time back. Things aren't completely settled yet but Damon anticipates that they'll get better and not worse. There are some decisions such as their future living arrangements for example, that still need to be made but for now, they're going to take it one day at a time. As much as it hurts him inside to have to say goodbye, Damon's obligations at the university can't wait any longer.

"I'll miss you," he whispers into Elena's ear.

"I'll miss you too," she gives him a small smile, but he can see there's sadness in her eyes.

"I'll be back soon," he offers. "And you, I hope, maybe you could come to see me too? This isn't forever, you know? We'll figure it out."

"I know," Elena smiles and it warms his heart that she really means it. There's no fear there anymore because she knows that he isn't going to have a change of heart.

 _It's really incredible how much can be accomplished in just a few short days when they put their minds to it._

Enzo and Elena take him to the airport and soon he'll have to board his plane. He's certain he'll be fighting the urge to call her every few minutes. Because of Elena's appointments, Enzo goes through the drop off zone rather than park, the constraints of time don't allow for them to go inside with him. They all step out of the car, Enzo pulls his luggage out of the trunk while Damon wraps his arms around his wife. He swoops down on her like a vampire, his mouth claiming hers in a kiss that sears her insides and leaves her gasping for air. They pull apart at the sound of car horns and a few whistles. Elena's lips are quivering and her heart is slamming against her chest.

"Wow!"

"I love you, Elena." Needing to touch her one more time, he brushes his lips against her forehead, picks up his bags and reluctantly walks into the terminal. After checking in his luggage, he gets a coffee and heads for the correct gate. He will have to face Vanessa again and figure out what he's going to do about his work so his marriage won't suffer once again. He will have to face wrath of his mother and sister, _that will be fun._

But he does know one thing, it's going to be a new journey for them. With Elena at his side he's not worried in the least.

 _He's excited._

* * *

 _Eva and I want to thank you all so very much. I know I say it repeatedly but it's the truth, you're all the best of the DE fandom. ._

 _Thank you Eva. I love you dearly._

 _Chapter title: '(Just Like) Starting Over' by John Lennon._

 _My dear, dear friend **Florencia7** has started a new story, it's amazing. Her Damon and Elena are simply magic, the atmosphere she creates is breathtaking, there's no other word to describe it. It's called ' **A Thousand Miles & A Hundred Years**.'. I'm sure she'd love if some of you would take a look. _

_'Welcome to the Jungle' will update next. I'm sorry, I just didn't get to it yesterday._

 _I hope you all have a safe and fantastic day and a wonderful rest of your week. Thank you all again._


	16. Angels and Demons

"I'll be alright, Enzo, I'm free on Monday so there's no need for me to spend the whole weekend in Vegas and besides that, I want to surprise him... I think he can take it." she teases, a radiant smile lighting up her face.

 _"Are you sure you don't want to play the slots why you're there? You do remember how well your 'surprises' turned out in the past, right? I know he's... evolving but how much exactly?"_

She can tell he's joking. Shockingly Enzo has done complete 180 where Damon is concerned, practically becoming his biggest cheerleader overnight. It's astounding really.

"No, I'm not going to waste my time gambling. And you're right, Damon is evolving, I believe in him, alright? You," she starts, emphasizing the word, "enjoy the weekend with Bonnie, feel free to use all of our house... except for my bedroom of course."

Enzo laughs, _"Now that, my friend, sounds like a challenge."_

"Ewww, don't you dare!" She knows he's just joking and plays along.

 _"Okay, okay, your room, your sanctuary. Be careful Elena, let me know when you get there and what time you're scheduled to arrive on Monday."_

They end the call, Elena is feeling relaxed and content. She wasn't even aware of how much her own ebullient state of mind has influenced Enzo's. He is spending more time with Bonnie while still working his ass for her career and wellbeing in general. She feels a little guilty for occupying so much of his time. _It's different now. Better._

Elena pays for the cab and glances at her watch. Since it's the weekend, she only has a carry on bag so no need to wait in line to check in her luggage. Having darted out of the studio the moment the cameras stopped rolling, she walks into one of the airport's lounges to grab a sandwich. She's so excited that her belly is churning and alight with butterflies at what she's about to do. It's been years since she felt like this.

For a brief moment she considers giving Damon a call because she has enough self awareness, born from experience, to know that another rejection might destroy her. However, the image of his face lighting up with an infectious smile makes her shove the phone back to her handbag.

She's who she's always been... the same young girl whose mother taught her to follow her own path, she won't turn back now.

When she hears her flight called overhead, she finishes her coffee, takes her bag and hurries to catch her flight.

* * *

Damon suppresses a yawn, not for the first time since his first class started this morning. Thankfully it's Friday and he gets to leave in... one hour and 25 minutes. He doubts or at least he hopes that no one will feel the need to stop him after class to ask a bunch of questions. Usually the future historians that take his class aren't all that eager by the time Friday rolls around.

It's only been two weeks since he last saw Elena but it's felt more like an eternity.

Things between himself and Vanessa are frosty at best. She does do her job with the same precision she always has but there's no creative cooperation between them anymore and he doubts there ever will be again. He can't blame her but he also knows that they won't be able to continue to work together. It's going to have to be dealt with, sooner rather than later. On the bright side, the problem should soon resolve itself...

He stops at the cafeteria to have a quick lunch and then heads back to his classroom for the last one of the day. He raises his hand to the students without bothering to even look at them. Besides, a third of the students skip out on Fridays to get an early start on the weekend. After finishing what's left in his water bottle, he opens his notebook and starts his lecture.

"The last time we met, we discussed romanticism in art history. Today we'll review what we learned and then continue with artists that represent this viewpoint of history. Mr. Lockwood, can you tell us what century we're talking about here?"

While Mr. Lockwood correctly places the artistic movement to first half of 19th century, Damon's eyes check the people in class, nearly choking on his saliva when he notices a petite brunette. He's certain that he's seen her _somewhere._

She's wearing a university tee shirt and skinny jeans along with sexy pair of glasses. Her hair is in a pony tail, she's not wearing a stitch of makeup and still she's a vision as if Aphrodite herself sculpted the mold. He does a double take to make sure that his eyes aren't deceiving him.

 _"_ Can you define romanticism for us, Miss...?"

She meets his unwavering stare with one of her own. "Romanticism was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in late 18th century western Europe. It stressed strong emotion, imagination, freedom within or even from classical notions in art, overturning previous societal conventions, particularly the positions of the aristocracy..."

 _The almighty internet.._ Of course he wouldn't be able to trip her up on such an easy question. She knows everything about different artistic movements. That's her profession and she always goes to great lengths to prepare herself for her parts.

"Ehm, alright... Miss," Damon flips through a few pages of his notebook. "Let's see how well prepared you really are." He focuses his eyes only on her and it's as if the rest of the class simply fades away. Their mischievous glint seems to reflect the corners of her mouth which are fighting a smile. They glow with humor and a playfulness that gives him shivers and wraps him in a warm embrace at the same time.

With a subtle wink, Elena offers, "Name's Langdon."

Damon nearly erupts into raucous laughter but somehow he manages to disguise it with a cough. "Alright, enough," he adds trying to get his students to shut it when they start chattering like Myna birds. Much to his relief, the ruckus quickly dies down.

"Now, which one of you will tell us about characteristics of the period?"

He isn't the least bit surprised when Elena's hand flies upwards immediately.

* * *

After he finishes his lesson and answers a few more questions, the students pile out of the classroom to get to their next one, Elena slowly collects her things and puts them in her backpack, all part of her little act today. Damon looks around, his eyes twinkling with mirth when blue meets brown.

"Miss Langdon, can you step into my office please?"

Elena's head shoots up, her own eyes sparkling with amusement. She quickly slips back into character when she notices that they're not the only people in the room.

"Um.. Yes, of course, Professor Salvatore."

Once the last student slips through the door, Damon waits for her at the threshold. With a wink that only she can see, he leads her down the corridor towards his office. Mesmerized by her beauty and the fact that she's here, he keeps looking at her, his heart is thumping with anticipation, knowing that as soon as they're behind his closed door, he's going to wrap her in his arms and kiss her senseless.

They're within a few feet of his office when Vanessa crosses their path. Without paying attention to her, she steps in front of him. "Damon? Can you give me a few minutes? I have some things that I need to talk to you about."

The last thing he wants to do in this moment is get into a long discussion about whatever she has in mind but he's not sure he can avoid it without bringing Elena to her attention. It's not that he's embarrassed or ashamed to have Elena at his side, far from it but he also sees no need to hurt Vanessa anymore than he already has.

"Does it have to be now? I have a meeting with one of my students," he nods quickly in Elena's direction.

Vanessa only now realizes that Damon isn't alone. Apparently she doesn't recognize his wife because she gives her a disinterested look. However, she takes one more look because she doesn't remember seeing this particular girl when she substituted for Damon while he was in California. And yet she does look remotely familiar. Brushing it off, she ignores her and turns back to Damon.

"I'm not sure that it can be delayed..."

"Um, Professor Salvatore, I can wait," _the girl_ offers.

Damon looks at her searchingly, then nods. "Alright Miss Langdon, thank you. I'll be with you shortly."

He pulls his door open then steps aside so Vanessa can go in first. His eyes meet Elena's as he shuts the door behind them. He takes a deep breath to fortify himself and then turns to face her, giving her his full attention. She has a serious expression on her face. He knows whatever she has to say isn't going to be pleasant.

Damon sighs and before she even opens her mouth to begin, he offers, "Look, Vanessa, I'm really very sorry about everything. We're both on pins and needles around each other and I wish I could change that. I know this is especially difficult for you and again, I apologize but I believe I've come up with the best solution. After weighing the pros and cons, I've decided that I'm going to move to LA to be with Elena. I'll do everything I can to support you, I can talk to the Dean, whatever it takes if you decide that you want to stay here and take over my job. You're more than qualified for it. This is your home, Vanessa, you belong here. Don't leave because of me. If you ever go, do it on your own terms."

"You're... leaving? You, LA, that makes no sense? Los Angeles represents everything you hate. You spend a few weeks there and you turn your life upside down. What's happened to you, Damon?" she's more than surprised, even shaking her head back and forth as if in shock.

"Ness?"

She points her finger towards the door. "I'm just going to..."

Damon gives her a crooked smile, "Leave? Don't go, not unless and until it's something that you really want. It's weird isn't it? How life sometimes has its own ideas?"

Vanessa nods and takes a step to leave. "I'll be on my way then..."

"Before you leave, I'd like to add one more thing. I hope that someday you can find it in your heart to forgive me. It was never my intention... "

She pulls it open and then pauses, their eyes meeting one last time.

"Good luck, Ness."

She smiles tightly and walks out, pulling the door closed behind her. Damon breathes a sigh of relief. He can feel the definitiveness of it. He's ready to move on. _With her._

* * *

Almost immediately after she leaves his office, Damon goes in search of Elena. He looks in the cafeteria and the library. He finally finds her walking down the corridor, stopping to look through the windows that surround the courtyard. His smile widens from ear to ear and then very quietly he closes the distance between them.

"Are you ready to go?" he speaks from behind her.

Elena turns around and smiles. "Of course."

"I'm sorry that you had to wait, because of..." he trails off.

Elena caresses his face with her eyes, she doesn't want to cause a scandal if she touched him, something a student would never do. "I'm sorry too. I didn't want to play charades with Vanessa but since she didn't recognize me, I didn't see any reason to hurt her further with my presence."

"You are the most amazing woman I've ever met." His heart is bursting with so much love that all he wants to do is kiss her. Damon gently takes her under her elbow and directs her to the back door.

"I'm so glad you're here..." he smiles contently.

* * *

After Damon finishes putting his things away in his office, he locks the door and then the two of them leave the building on foot. His heart is exploding with happiness having her here with him.

"Where are we going?" Elena asks as they head down the sidewalk with Damon leading the way.

"Just wait for it," he responds, takes her hand and has her in tow. Elena's eyes widen in awe as she wonders what has become of her serious, reserved husband? She always knew he had potential still... Before long, they end up standing in front of a small bar that doesn't look at all familiar to her.

'Paddy Murphy's Irish Pub' is flashing in neon lights above the door.

"What's here? We've never been here before."

"No we haven't, but I feel like celebrating the fact that you so unexpectedly crashed my lesson and I couldn't be happier about that," he kisses the crown of her head, "and, I'm sure there will be some people inside that I'd like to introduce you to."

Elena's mouth forms an 'o' and she follows him inside. Her eyes need to adjust to the darkness, but when they do, she finds herself in a cozy room. She's mesmerized by the fish tank that's built into the shape of an ale tankard. She pulls free from Damon to get a closer look. He chuckles and follows wrapping his arms around her from behind, he presses a kiss to the back of her neck. She shivers and then looks around a little more. There are green and gold curtains, neon lights, wooden booths. There's a big long bar top with a mirrored bar, an endless supply of alcohol. She laughs at the great big leprechaun. There is also a stage for live music. As she turns a little farther, the first familiar person she sees is...

"You want to introduce me to your lawyer? I already know Ric!" With a smile she heads over to him who clearly doesn't recognize her at the first glance.

"Damon, what the fuck?" he hisses. "When did you become one of those creepy professors who sneak around with their students?"

Damon barks with laughter. "I think I'm insulted, Ric?"

Elena grins, "Thank you Ric, every woman likes to hear she doesn't age."

Ric turns to her and his eyes almost bulge out of his head. "Elena? What are you doing here?"

"She just showed up in my class this afternoon, she kicked my other students' asses with her witty commentary."

Ric quickly pulls another chair over and after they sit down, he asks what they want to drink.

"Give us a few minutes Ric. I need to make the rounds with her first. There's a few people who I'd like her to meet." He drags Elena to another table, leaving a shocked Ric behind.

Elena's stunned, Damon not only introduces her to a few of his colleagues, he's actually bragging about her. They're rather normal people, not stuffy or arrogant, enjoying Friday evening like everyone else. Elena chats with a pair of them, a married couple and definitely not snobs. Professor Matt Donovan and his wife April tell her they've never seen Damon as free and easy going as he's been over the last few weeks, even expressing how happy they are to meet her.

After taking their seats, Damon starts to chat animatedly with another colleague of his, history professor Connor Jordan, Elena can tell the two have always a lot to talk about. Still, their looks often go to her and Elena can recognize in Damon's eyes something she never thought would be there.

 _Pride._

Ric joins them soon and they all have a pleasant evening. It's after ten when Damon shares a look with Elena and they agree on calling it a night. Elena had a busy week and didn't close an eye during the flight. Besides, _she wants to have her husband just for herself._

* * *

"It was nice, getting to know your friends and colleagues," Elena adds appreciatively, "thank you."

"No, thank you Elena. It was pure pleasure to watch them, one by one fall under your spell, the same way I did a few years ago. I actually liked to see them pea green with envy!" Damon grins.

They took a cab, dropping Ric off at his house and now Elena's standing in the house she once called home. She looks around, touches a few things and returns Damon's grin.

"And you were shamelessly boasting."

"What can I say?" Damon shrugs. "Can you blame me?" He comes to stand behind her and embraces her, putting his chin on her shoulder. "Are you...? Do you feel alright here? I mean, it must seem weird, you know being here?"

Elena puts her hands on his forearms, looking at the garden through the window. "I'm alright... It was my home Damon, still is. But you're right, it does feel weird."

"Are you hungry? Do you want to go to bed, you must be tired? And um... where do you want to sleep?"

"Damon...," she turns around in his arms to meet his stare. "I think we're past this?"

Damon's breath gets stuck in his throat. _Is she saying what he thinks she's saying?_ "You mean...?"

"Yes Damon, that's exactly what I mean, that is _if_ you want me to?" she searches his eyes.

"Are you kidding?" he whispers, then grabs her and carries her upstairs to their room. Once he sets her down, he brushes his lips against hers.

"I'll give you some privacy," Damon tells her and leaves her in the room alone.

When he comes back, Elena has already showered, now she's laying on _their_ bed, looking at the ceiling, trying to memorize everything she once knew. Damon can't get enough of the sight. He sits on the bed next to her.

"I missed you more than I can put into words..."

"I missed you too," she replies, shifting to make room for him.

Damon lays down next to her and for a long while he says nothing. _Words aren't necessary._

"I don't know how to explain it, Elena. It sounds insane, I know that but it was like I was somehow, without my knowledge, imprisoned in a limbo of sorts. I kept thinking and trying to let you go, but I never did and honestly, I never could..."

His words are like a balm to Elena's wounds. She needs to touch him now. She needs to feel that he's real. Raising her hand, she puts her palm on his cheek and lets it rest for a few moments. Then she leans closer and gives him the sweetest kiss. Damon doesn't hesitate to return the favor and in no time they're kissing as if it's their last kiss.

The closer they get, the more impatient his body is. He can tell that she wants it too. _It's been too long._

So what's holding him back? It's his own sense of guilt and shame, he can't just take her but she's calling shots here and her signals are crystal clear. This is not a one night stand, or a rushed sex after three days dating. _She's his wife,_ and she will be treated like one.

Damon's hand slips under Elena's nightgown and freezes for a bit to see if she wants this or not. From the way she arches her back against his palm he thinks she's not opposed to it. He helps her out of her nightgown and his shirt and trousers follow.

 _She's beautiful._

His hand drifts to her hip, it settles there and pulls her closer. She sucks in a sharp breath when she's flush against his warm chest. His breathing quickens when he begins nuzzling her neck with feather light kisses, so faint they are like whispers. She begins to tremble and his head angles up slightly to the side as his lips come closer and closer to hers. Their breaths mingle making her heart flutter inside her chest. At first it's a delicate butterfly-like kiss and then his arms encircle her, drawing her to him like moth to flame.

His lips are gentle and warm, she feels her hands begin to move up his chest and circle around his neck as the kiss intensifies. Damon's hand tightens around her waist and pulls her impossibly closer, kissing her hungrily, wanting, needing more.

Then she feels herself being pushed backwards while Damon's body presses against hers. Their kiss is unending, their lips move together become more passionate and heated with each second that passes. When they part he lays her down admiring the flush of her body.

Her dusky nipples react with the colder air and he swallows thickly, longing to take their erect form into his mouth. She tastes like honey and lemon peel and makes soft noises as his lips travel over her skin. He pauses for a moment to meet her eyes, he's mesmerized by the deep swirls of brown that color her pupils. And then he captures her lips, each one has a raw, visceral intensity. Their breaths come in quick spurts and their hearts beat faster.

And then their skin is moving softly together, like the finest silk. She feels his hand enter from below moving fast, their tongues entwine in a kiss, and then he's inside, changing her breathing with every thrust. Suddenly he stops to drop kisses from her breasts to her stomach, then he adds his tongue, licking, laving and using his fingers all at once.

Seeing her reaction, feeling how her legs move, bewitched by the way her body writhes, he whispers what he's going to do and she lets out a moan, unable to form a coherent response. And then he's on her again, each foray harder and just long enough to inflame her mind before stopping to roll her onto her belly, taking time to caress her delicate curves with his palm, his mouth following the same path.

Elena's body comes alive under his ministrations, she can't believe they're here, in their home, making love again. He moves to cover her form with his own, his weight pressing her into the mattress. Heat radiates between them and she lets out a guttural moan. It deepens the carnal desire already exploding inside of him and he nudges her legs apart, which is completely unnecessary as she already made space for him. He joins their hands as he enters her from behind. It's the most exquisite feeling and for a second he lays still to let them both savor the moment. Feeling Elena's hips shift beneath him, Damon's hips automatically jerk against hers.

It earns him another heady moan and then he's thrusting with precision, having not forgotten how she likes it. It doesn't take long to bring them both to the edge and he can't even think about stopping. He slips his hand under her, his fingers driving her wild for the last few moments before she's swept away by a powerful orgasm. One, two, three... and he releases, bathing her womb with his warmth, her inner muscles coaxing every last drop. She's shaking violently and he quickly rolls on his side, taking care not to crush her while bringing her along. He holds her tightly, her back to his chest. Her breath comes in short gasps and he soothes her with gentle caresses and soft words.

"I love you so much. I'll never let you go, Elena, I'll never let you down again."

Elena squeezes his hand to return the sentiment. _She will never let him down either._

After awhile she turns around in his arms and her sparkling eyes are the best vision in the world. He kisses her sweet lips tenderly and holds her close.

"I feel like my life has started all over. I know I was in denial but having you here with me, I feel alive for the first time since you walked out that door three long years ago."

"Damon?" she whispers, brown eyes meeting blue.

"Don't feel guilty, Elena. I pushed you away and I intend to spend the rest of my life making it up to you. Thank you for giving me a second chance to do this, to make you happy, to be the husband I should have been from the start."

Elena moves even closer. "You gave us another chance as well, Damon. Where would I be if you had decided we were no longer worth the effort."

She can see he wants to protest and puts her finger over his lips to prevent an argument. "Let's just say we're both extremely lucky we found our way back to each other."

"I couldn't agree more," his voice resonates in his chest and Elena has to smile at that. "Elena," he continues, "I made a decision. I'm going to move to LA to be with you. We can start our new life there if you agree?"

Elena's eyes widen. "You don't have to do that. I would never ask you to give up something you love, your work is here... I'll still travel a lot, there's no need for you to uproot yourself. Ric is here, your family is close."

Damon shakes his head no. "It didn't exactly work out very well the last time. If you don't want LA, then we'll start new somewhere else, wherever you choose. You are my family, Elena, my home is wherever you are."

"If you're sure..."

"I am, it's what I want."

"How about we sleep on it... tomorrow we'll talk?"

"Oh no no," Damon's grin goes wider. "I'm nowhere near done with you for the night Mrs. Salvatore..."

 _It's been too long._

* * *

 _Eva and I want to thank you so very much. We're in awe and so incredibly grateful to all of you._

 _Thank you, Eva, my sister. I love you dearly._

 _Chapter title: 'Angels and Demons' by Aviators._

 _As soon as we finish writing WTTJ, we have "Once Upon a December" on the drawing board as well as "Waiting for a Star to Fall." I do post collages that I make for our stories on my scarlett2112 fb page. The address is in my profile if you're interested. You just have to copy and paste._

 _Thank you all again, you're the best of the DE fandom. We'll see you next with WTTJ 6. Have a wonderful day._


	17. Like A Movie

In the weeks that followed Elena's surprise visit to New Orleans, Damon turned in his resignation at Xavier University. It was hard and maybe a little bittersweet because he'd worked there nearly his entire career. Still when it came to a choice between it and Elena, there was no choice to make, he feels good about his decision and is excited for their future.

Even though it was hard to be away from her, he had to finish out the semester. As soon as he walked out of the building for the final time, he felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

His apartment had already been cleaned out so he stayed with Ric for the last six weeks of his term. The two friends hugged when he dropped him off at the airport to begin his new life with Elena in sunny southern California. With a promise that he'd fly out soon, Ric waved goodbye when Damon disappeared into the terminal.

* * *

It's a warm late summer afternoon at the beach. A golden blanket of sand outlines the ocean's unworldly blue hue, creating the perfect image for an artist. The topaz colored sun is perched high the sky, blazing like Titan's fiery wheel. It beats down on the calm ocean as a gust of wind whips around, carrying the unmistakable but enjoyable aroma of salt. Seagulls fly around in an uplifting rush, occasionally swooping down to snatch up tiny morsels of food.

Damon walks out of the sea, water dripping in rivulets down his chest and across the rippled muscles of his abdomen, like Poseidon himself. Elena drops her eyes, focusing on the trail of dark hair running down his taut belly. She finds herself licking her lips at the way his wet swim trunks outline his ample package. He rakes his hand through his wet hair to get it out of his face and then plops down beside her on the sand.

"How's the water?"

"It's nice. I never thought I'd say this Elena but I love living here," Damon mentions, slipping his sunglasses on while staring at the ocean in front of him. Stretching out his arms and legs, his eyes drift to hers, his grin grows slowly into a radiant gleam. He points to the sky above, the only marker of time is the sun above. He's come to enjoy these moments with her so much, just the two of them and the great expanse of blue water stretched out as far as the eye can see..

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Without letting another second pass, Damon pulls her into his arms and joins their lips in a fierce kiss. When they part, he winks at her and then tugs the big umbrella down to cover them so he can kiss all the way down her body if that's what he wants and _he does._

* * *

 _"I think you should join Elena on the red carpet."_

That's exactly where it all started. Enzo dropped the bombshell two weeks before the premiere of Elena's newest movie. Shockingly it never occurred to Damon that he would be the one on her arm for the big event, the thought having never crossed his mind. It's something that Enzo has always done. He wasn't sure how to feel about all the hub bub, lights, cameras and microphones being shoved in their faces. Yet here he is wearing a designer suit and accessories, the colors coordinating with Elena's stunning, back baring, emerald colored evening gown. Her look is complimented by a sexy yet elegant updo, subtle smoky eyes, emerald drop earrings and diamond bracelets adorning each wrist.

Damon finds himself mesmerized by the way she looks tonight. Taking a deep breath to fortify himself, he extends his palm. Elena meets his eyes and with a broad smile on her face, entwines their fingers, they're about to step onto _the_ red carpet. Even though he's nervous as hell, his heart beating wildly, he wouldn't be anywhere else but at her side.

Elena is her usual charming self, a vision, an incredible lady. He feasts his eyes on her, beaming with pride at the way she handles the crowd. _She belongs here. She was born to shine._

She slips her hand under his elbow and gives him an encouraging squeeze. "You'll be alright Damon, we'll make it."

Much too soon for him, it's their turn to move forward and walk down the vaunted red carpet. Their eyes meet and when she smiles at him, his heart soars. With her hand firmly latched onto his elbow, Elena makes the first step but Damon takes it from there with the next.

 _It's not that different from the TV show or giving a lecture, he'll be fine as long as she's with him._

Damon surprises even himself when he matches Elena's wit and charm with the audience, working the crowd like a pro. He hardly listens to what the broadcaster has to say about _the star of tonight's premiere and her newly discovered husband._

Instead, he finds comfort in Elena's weight on his forearm. Before he knows it, they continue further in the movie theatre. They're stopped by several reporters and TV people to answer a question or two but Damon can already feel the tension leaving his body. Standing nearby with Bonnie on his arm, Enzo gives him thumbs up for his _performance_ on the red carpet.

The premiere is an incredible success. Damon feels so proud that he can't wipe away the big grin on his face. He'd already seen the movie in a private showing with her at the studio but this atmosphere, the pageantry and opulence is a different world entirely.

The movie is no " _Tomorrow_ ", it's much lighter, witty, funny and Elena's simply adorable, beloved by the entire audience. The after party is huge. There are so many people that they can hardly squeeze through to get to their table. The food is gourmet, the champagne and chocolate fountains are flowing freely. Damon feels completely out of his element but he realizes that it's something that he can get used to, he'll have to for her, _for them._

On the way home after the long night, he can see how happy Elena looks. Even though he prefers solitude to evenings like this, he'll gladly do it all over again just to be able to see her face lit up the way it is now.

"Was it horrible for you?" Elena turns to him with a bit of concern in her voice.

"No," he takes her hand. "You won't be getting rid of me anytime soon, Mrs. Salvatore." And then he raises it to his mouth to press a kiss to the base of her thumb. The look in his eyes tells her that it's a promise for more...

* * *

Two days later, there's another premiere for Damon, one inherently more scary. As _old_ and experienced as he is, he can't shake the jitteriness that's surging through him with each pump of his chaotically beating heart.

"Are you sure we shouldn't just invite her here for the holidays or something?"

Enzo pats his shoulder. "Chill, Damon, Miranda doesn't bite. You seriously need to grow a set."

"Weren't you supposed to be on your way to see Bonnie?" Damon grimaces, wringing his clammy hands together.

"Of course, I'm just staying long enough to see you two off and to make sure you don't back out.. and besides, Damon, it's really fun to see you squirm," as usual, Enzo won't let anyone to ruin his good mood.

As soon as the cab arrives, he helps Damon carry the luggage outside and stow it in the trunk. Elena gives him a hug and then the two of them get into the car. The driver jumps back behind the wheel and the vehicle starts to move. Elena looks out of the window, laughing and waving back when she sees Enzo doing the same with that shit eating grin on his face.

"Maybe it's not such a good idea to just show up, Elena?" Damon asks some time later when they're already on board the plane.

"Damon, mom knows we're coming," she rolls her eyes playfully.

"She knows about me?!"

"Of course, she's anxious to meet you."

Damon unhappily settles in his seat and looks out of the window. The last few months have been crazy. After lazing around, joining Elena on some of her travels, Damon began his search a new teaching job. With luck and thanks to his good name and reputation, he was hired by Pepperdine University. By some crazy stroke of luck, the man who was in charge of the Art History department announced his retirement only days before he put in his application. When the Dean offered him the job, he jumped on it.

Now that he's permanently relocated, he, Elena and Enzo had to decide what to do about their house. Even though both he and Elena wanted him to stay, Enzo decided, with her blessing, that he'd find a new one for himself and Bonnie, preferably one close by because he and Elena are as close as siblings and they'd miss each other terribly.

As Damon watches the runway get closer and closer as they prepare to land, his stomach is churning with anxiety about meeting his mother in law.

 _What does he say to the woman who knows how badly he mistreated her daughter?_

In the end, his worries turn out to be unfounded. He doesn't have to say anything. When they land at Kahului Airport in Maui, Miranda is waiting for them near their luggage carousel. As soon as Elena lays eyes on the woman, she pulls free from Damon and runs towards her. She catches Elena in her arms and the two beautiful women stay in a tight embrace for a few minutes. Damon can't help but smile at the sight. When they let go, Miranda approaches him.

"Glad to finally meet you, Dr. Salvatore."

* * *

"Damon, you must call me Damon."

After an awkward moment Miranda gives him a short hug, and although he can sense her watchful eyes on him more than once their first day, Miranda turns out the most easy-going host he could wish for. They spend an amazing week in Hawaii.

Much to Damon's surprise, Miranda insists he accompany her to the school to show him her work. He's finds himself completely in awe of her when she explains to him how she helps the children with art therapy, the same way she helped Elena when she was a child. They also embrace the beauty of the islands, embarking on plenty of sightseeing, including visiting the Hawaiian volcanoes.

Damon also insists that they pay a visit to the USS Arizona Memorial. Damon's grandfather fought in WW2 so it has much meaning for him, the solemnity of the site moves him deeply. 'The Place of Black Tears' is a permanent shrine that is always changing. Every few moments, small bursts of oil that have been locked in darkness for more than seven decades suddenly escape from the fuel tanks of the ship's sunken hull. Like spirits silently ascending from the past, the 'black tears' quietly surface and spread across the water. There swirled by the breeze and tide, they move in a rhythmic dance choreographed by the natural conditions of the day. Pearl Harbor survivors were the first to use the expression black tears as well as 'tears of the Arizona", 1177 people were killed on the ship.

As the days progress, they don't take even a day to rest up, instead they indulge in many of the local delicacies and even attend a luau, complete with the leis around their neck. Elena snaps many photos, "Blackmail material," she teases, laughing at the sight of her staid professor wearing a flower necklace.

Nearly everyday, they make time to take a dip into the warm, sparkling blue waters of the Pacific. Elena insists that they go scuba diving which was new for him but the pristine beauty beneath the ocean's surface is something that he'll never forget. The week flies past and even Damon, who was terrified of meeting Miranda, isn't ready to leave. She reassures him that they'll see her again soon.

"You should spend the holidays with us at uncle Zach's, mama," Elena suggests hopefully and Damon immediately supports the idea.

"That is a phenomenal idea, sweetheart," he gushes, brushing a kiss to her hair. Turning his attention to Miranda, he adds, "My uncle has a huge boarding house so there's always a room available."

"Yes, mama! Please tell me you'll come! There's usually a lot of snow so you, I mean we could have a real Christmas!"

Miranda caresses Elena's cheek, unable to dampen her child-like enthusiasm. Despite her doubts she finds Damon a decent guy and she wouldn't mind being able to spend more time getting to know him and his family. And of course, she's always excited to be with her daughter.

"I guess we'll see each other at Christmas then."

* * *

Elena and Damon hurry to their departure gate after his mom and Katherine drop them off DFW airport. "I can't believe we missed our flight, mama is flying in from Hawaii and she'll be in Virginia before us."

Elena looks and feels frustrated as they finally reach their gate. They sit down and Elena leans against him.

"It was you who decided that having an argument with my sister was worth your time," Damon teases, brushing a kiss to her silken strands.

"Well, it worked didn't it? Both of them were decent, I think I even saw your mom smile when they dropped us off."

"You could have slayed the two of them with one hand tied behind your back."

She leans away, her skeptical eyes meeting his.

"It's true, but seriously, sweetheart, you don't need to worry about your mom, Zach will be there to pick her up and he'll take good care of her till we get there."

"I know," Elena concurs, laying her head on his shoulder. "And I'm very much aware of how lucky we were to get tickets on the very next Atlanta bound flight. If Christmas wasn't still a week away, I think our wait would have been much longer."

"Well, I suppose being a very well known and popular Hollywood star does have its advantages," Damon gives her a wink.

Elena grins, "That too... And the argument was totally worth it."

Deciding he'd rather drink lye, Damon put off the 'meet his family' thing for as long as he possibly could. However, it'd been months since he received a disgruntled sounding call from his sister followed by an even more difficult one with his mother so they decided it was time. They booked a hotel and left California a few days early to stop in Texas. It wasn't pleasant, they both tried to just brush off the way Damon's mother ignored Elena's presence and how Katherine talked about importance of academic education, "real" science and true art all the time.

Elena always stopped him from saying something that he might regret afterwards, but on the day they were supposed to leave Katherine mentioned the divorce statistics of 'so called celebrities' and that's when Elena had her fill of their pomposity.

 _"It seems to me, Katherine, that you'd be immensely pleased if Damon and I became one of those statistics. I know we went through a rough patch but that's behind us. So you'll have to hang your hat on something else because what I'm about to say is going to disappoint you. According to your statistics, those marriages barely last a year, two at the most and we're already in the fifth year of ours._

 _And if nothing else, I'm always up for a good challenge. Since you saw fit to wave a red flag in front of my eyes, you can bet your last dollar that I'll keep... we'll keep this marriage intact. Have you ever done any of this so-called research into academic-based marriages? I mean, I'd like to get to know the people involved with 'so called academics' who often turn out to be arrogant asses unable to look in the mirror and recognize how unimportant they actually are._

 _I said the same thing to Damon once upon a time and I'm telling you now. How much pleasure and fun do you really get while lecturing people that interact with you? How many smiles have you personally put on their faces? Or rather how many frowns are you responsible for? Do you put any effort at all into making people around you and your supposed loved ones happy? Or do you love to drive the metaphorical dagger in just because you can?"_

 _Katherine gives a gasp, caught off guard by Elena's unexpected and fiery speech._

 _Elena uses this pause to tell the two shocked women goodbye and tells Damon she'll wait outside for him._

 _Then it's Damon's turn. He tells them in no uncertain terms that Elena will always be his first choice. Either they learn to accept her as part of their family or they can say goodbye to him. He leaves no room for argument and then walks out of the house, slamming the door shut behind him._

 _After her brutal beat down of his relatives, they stop at a bar for a drink because Elena's temper needs cooling off. Damon keeps her company with an amused grin on his face. He can't wait to have her in their hotel room, which is why they miss their morning flight to Atlanta._

* * *

When they land at Hartsfield International airport in Atlanta later in the day, Zach and Miranda are both waiting for them. Zach shakes Damon's hand firmly and has to laugh at Elena's obvious relief about finally being with her mom.

"Did you really think I wouldn't take proper care of your mom?"

Elena ignores his teasing, she's too happy to see her mama. Miranda gives both her daughter and son in law a hug and all of them leave the airport in Zach's Range Rover. The days leading up to and Christmas itself are beautiful.

Zach has just a few regular guests for the holidays so he's not too busy. As such, he's able to spend a good deal of time with them. On Christmas Eve Miranda helps him to prepare dinner, Elena and Damon are charged with the tree and decorations. After dinner, they all relax by the fireplace while Zach tells them embarrassing stories of his nephew's childhood. Damon smiles and tells them how Zach covered his ass more than once when he got into trouble.

"Of my entire family, Zach's probably the only one that I can introduce you to with no fallout. I'm sure Elena told you everything about my mother and sister," Damon turns to Miranda. "Zach can confirm that I'm not exaggerating."

Zach laughs, "True, I wouldn't be happy if those two suddenly showed up and wanted to spend Christmas here. On the other hand, it's something I'll never have to worry about because they consider me too... how shall I say it, um.. ordinary, a pariah if you will."

"Well, I wouldn't invite Elena's father for Christmas either," Miranda adds.

Damon looks at Elena searching for the reaction after hearing Miranda's words. Elena never talks about her father and Damon never asked because he didn't know whether he would be stirring up some painful memories for her. Zach seems to be interested too.

"I don't remember my father," Elena speaks up when she notices Damon's questioning look. "He decided family life wasn't for him so he picked up and left us when I was only two."

"He decided rather abruptly that I wasn't the right woman for him, at least that was his excuse. He wanted me to wait on him hand and foot, 24/7. I refused. I wanted to draw, to teach and put my ideas into practice," Miranda explains. "We were just kids when I found out I was pregnant. We met and fell in love at school. Both of us were enrolled in the graphic arts program but John wasn't able to make a career for himself. He just wasn't that good. When I became a bit more successful, he couldn't handle it. One day he was home, the next day he was gone with a promise to be in touch. I never heard from him again. I have no idea if he's alive or dead but Elena and I were and are happy, right baby girl?" she smiles as she gently brushes a loose strand of hair behind Elena's ear.

"The happiest," Elena smiles at her.

The both Salvatore men think the women are a beautiful sight.

* * *

When the New Year's soiree` is over, they all regret that the time has come for them to go back to their busy lives. Production of Elena's new movie is getting close. There will be rehearsals and location traveling and the whole nine yards. As much as Damon hates it when she's away, he trusts Enzo to take good care of her like he always has. She flies home and he flies to her as often as it can be arranged when they're apart.

Damon has to get back to work, it requires his presence. Besides that, he's busy doing research for his next book idea. It's a strange yet wonderful feeling, returning home with Elena, back to sunny and busy LA. Because she has a specific date to be on set, they book the flight as close to that date as possible since neither really wants to leave Virginia. When their flight is booked, Elena goes to give the news to her mom.

"I don't have to be back before the end of the month, my neighbor takes care of the house. I think I'm going to stay here for a bit longer. She shares looks with Zach and both Damon and Elena's mouths form an 'o'.

* * *

Damon is trying to finish the last few pages of the book he's reading but he keeps getting distracted by trivial things. Like right now, he can hear Elena splashing in the swimming pool. It's beautiful outside, the weather is finally warm enough for her to frolic in the water. She's having fun, he decides and immerses himself back in his book. It's about chemical tests, radiocarbon dating and other methods to determine the age of paintings, statues and fossils among other things. It's not exactly the most interesting part of his research but it's necessary for the completeness of the theme. He works for a few more hours unexpectedly realizing that he must have been pretty deep in thought because he startles when he becomes aware of her tiptoeing across the carpet.

"Damon?"

"Can't you just... say my name or something? You startled me!" He's aware his frustration's coming through and he really doesn't want to take it out on her... _He won't._

"I'm sorry, I aware that you're busy... And I know I promised to let you work and I really, really don't want to disturb you.. but I seriously need your advice.. You know since... well.. by now you must be an expert in all of that chemical stuff type stuff... tests, the periodic table and the like..."

"What are you talking about?" Damon turns around confused, finding himself looking at the object that Elena thrusts in front of his eyes. Two blue lines on a stick. His mouth opens in shock.

"Is that...? Are we?"

Elena scrutinizes his reaction carefully. She most certainly likes what she sees because her eyes are brimming with mirth and a big smile spreads on her face as she nods vigorously.

It takes two seconds for Damon to jump to his feet, catch her in his arms and kiss her senseless. Elena can barely catch her breath when he removes his mouth from hers for a minute, his smile wide and radiant. With one dramatic sweep of his arm, all of his papers, notes and even several books fly off the desk and he lays her down on it. Elena squeaks in surprise.

"What are you doing?"

" _We,_ are celebrating."

No books or research or lectures are nowhere near as exciting as this new adventure that life is about to take them on. Strangely, there are no doubts or worries and he feels _so ready._

He first bares her belly to give it a gentle kiss then his fingers slip lower to remove her bikini bottom. "You're nicely wet...," he murmurs against her skin, "From the pool of course."

 _He's ready in more than one way._

 _Fin._

* * *

 _Eva and I want to thank you so very much for accompanying us on the journey with this version of Damon and Elena. I will miss them._ _We are incredibly grateful to all of you._

 _Thank you, Eva, my sister. I love you dearly._

 _Chapter title: 'Like a Movie" by Midtown._

 _I did post a picture of Elena's emerald gown on my FB page. The address is in my profile if you're interested. You just have to copy and paste._

 _Thank you all again, you're the best of the DE fandom. We'll see you next with WTTJ. Have a wonderful day._


	18. Author's note

I am posting the sequel one shot to November Rain. It's called 'Never In A Million Years'. I hope you'll all enjoy it as much as we enjoyed dipping into the lives of this Damon and Elena again.

Thank you and have a terrific day.


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